Newspaper Article of 1935, V. E. Gilmore, Mail Carrier 1905-1935 Lake Charles, Calcasieu Parish, LA ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ Submitted by Sherry Helms (tmodel53@bellsouth.net) October, 2006 Lake Charles American Press May, 1935 V.E.Gilmore made his last delivery Wednesday afternoon at 2 o'clock and at the age of 65 years he has decided to rest up a while after walking 125,000 miles on Lake Charles streets and up Lake Charles stairs in his 30 years of service with the United States post office department. "Ryan was still a dirt street when I started. It hadn't even been shelled." Mr. Gilmore said today. "The old mule-cars were poking along, then, and there were no side walks, except in one or two places where board walks had been built." For the last 24 years his route has covered the business district. He carried a residental route the first six. Mr. Gilmore, who has been answering for many years to the name of "Uncle Sam" to down-town wags, has missed very few days of work since he made his first delivery on May 17, 1905. And leaving out legal holidays and Sundays, he has tramped the streets with his mail bag for right at 9,000 days. Walking 12 to 14 miles a day, those 9,000 days, that is five times around the world - 125,000 miles in all. "Yep," says Mr. Gilmore, "I'm going to give my feet a little rest." And the best thing about it all is that he will be able to relax after his 125,000-mile, 30 year plodding without financial worry, for he made provisions during those years paying $75 a year for "old age" insurance that will give him satisfactory retirement pay each month for the rest of his life. (Unfortunately, Mr Gilmore died of pneumonia on Nov, 11, 1935)