How do cable addresses work (e.g., "Wire Paladin, San Francisco")?

[Baal_Houtham]

@OldGuy

[…] Some time in 60’s a letter was delivered to Mad Magazine with no address other than a picture of Alfred E Neuman pasted on the envelope. There were no computer read addresses in those days, and even less so in Paladin’s time.

There may have been earlier instances, but I’m currently looking at the June 1970 issue which features something similar in its letters dept.

At the top of the column, labeled “Addressee Known”, is a photo of an envelope featuring a large cut-out image of Alfred E, a postmarked stamp (FDRoosevelt), a Washington state return addy, and (in the lower right corner) a zip code.

That 10022 is a definite buzz killer.

The caption:
Looks like the U.S. Post Office Dept. has gone “MAD.” Dave Slater, of Richland, Wash., sent his subscription renewal in this envelope, and it got to us without a mark.—Ed.

By circuitous circumstance, that issue of Mad has been sitting on the the tank of my basement toilet for four months.

[Melbourne]

@whitetho

Well, I messed up that reply. On further review, the † symbol indicates communities, not hotels, with telegraph offices.

However, I was able to find a few references at the California Digital Newspaper Collection site. At this time the two main U.S. telegraph companies were Western Union and Postal Telegraph (which, despite its similar name, was a private company unrelated to the U.S. Postal Service): Hotel La Vista Grande, Monrovia, 1903, Tremont Hotel, Red Bluff, 1904, Clarendon Hotel, Los Angeles, 1875 where “The Western Union Telegraph Offices communicate with the Reading Room”, Blackman House, Los Angeles, 1875 (which became the Grand Central Hotel), and another Grand Central Hotel, Tabor City, 1875.

Hmmmmm. I said “swank hotel”, but actually I picture Paladin more as an upper-class commercial traveller, not a millionaire businessman.

[Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus]

@ThelmaLou

I love “HANDCUFFS, LONDON”!

A fictional private detective agency, in a few of the P.G. Wodehouse novels, was conducted by one Percy Pilbeam in the Picadilly Circus neighborhood.

Wire PILGUS PICCY, LONDON.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[ThelmaLou]

@Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus

A fictional private detective agency, in a few of the P.G. Wodehouse novels, was conducted by one Percy Pilbeam in the Picadilly Circus neighborhood.

Wire PILGUS PICCY, LONDON.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[Longrifle]

[International cable register of the world in conjunction with Western Union telegraphic code. : International Cable Directory Company (International cable register of the world in conjunction with Western Union telegraphic code. : International Cable Directory Company : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive)

I’m a little late to the party, but here we go…

The above link will let you download the International Cable Register of The World. Kind of like a phone book (remember those?) for wiring people/businesses. I looked through the San Francisco listings, on the off-chance that there might have been a “PALADIN”, just to see who had it. There may have been a PALADIN somewhere, but not in SF as of the date of this register. Hope this helps…if anyone ever sees this!

[RealityChuck]

Even now, some companies have their own zip code. If you were to send to zip 12345, it’d go to GE.

[Senegoid]

I’ve mentioned this (possibly apocryphal) story before: Someone sent a letter, the address consisting of a picture of a marijuana leaf and a picture of a candy cane, San Francisco, CA.

It found its way to the intended recipient: Herb Caen (d. 1997), well-known columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle.

@UDS

Traditionally, post offices take pride in correctly delivering obscurely-addressed mail.

Anyone think the modern United States Post Office can still be arsed to do that these days?

[Chronos]

@Francis_Vaughan

Amusingly, I think exactly the same thing could be said of email addresses.

I think you’re bang on, there.

[Digital_is_the_new_Analog]

About 15 years ago, I received mail with my name on it, but the wrong address. If I remember correctly, the street number was wrong. So at least at that point, it seemed like someone in the USPS put a little effort in to the delivery.