In 1666 Ramapogue Street, now called Elm Street, was laid out 330 feet wide, the same width as our town common is today. All of the buildings on the East side of Elm Street, including where the United States Post Office now stands, are on land that would have been part of the street at that time.
In 1720, when Reverend Samuel Hopkins was chosen as the town’s new minister, there was no appropriate homelot for him. So the town voted to give him a piece of the 330 foot wide "Ramapogue Street". Reverend Hopkins built his house on land that had been set aside for the street. After his death in 1755, the next minister, Reverend Joseph Lathrop purchased the property. Years later, his son, Samuel Lathrop, built a new house on the site and it remained a landmark until it was torn down to make way for the present Post Office in 1935.
Postal service has existed in West Springfield from the time of the earliest settlement in 1636. In the early days letters were carried by friends and relatives from one community to another or brought to a coastal town to be sent back to England.
The first "official" postal service in the colonies dates from 1691. The modern postal system, as we know it today, did not start until 1836.
The earliest West Springfield postal records indicate that in 1802 Jeremiah Stebbins was appointed as the town’s first Postmaster. He and the next several postmasters provided services from their homes.
At the start of the 20th century West Springfield had three different official post offices. One was in the town’s center while the other two were located in the Merrick and Mittineague sections of town. Shortly after the present Elm Street Post Office opened, the Mittineague and Merrick offices were closed.