9 South Main Street circa 1870 Italiante style

Wilmington’s post office, which opened in the fall of 1800, had an itinerant history until it settled at its current location on East Main Street in 1960. It was based in this building in the 1870s. Mail delivery depended on the transportation available. Initially, a stagecoach carrying passengers and mail would leave for Brattleboro about 5 a.m. and return about 8 p.m. After rail service began, mail was carried to and from the station by foot. When the Flood of 1927 damaged the tracks, a “star” route was established: Contractors were hired to deliver mail using whatever transportation they chose.

The first hand pump fire apparatus, “Old Maria,” was stored in a small building nearby. In 1885, 16 men - eight to a side - rushed Old Maria to the fire that destroyed a group of buildings where Memorial Hall and the Crafts Inn now stand.