December 4

The most famous postmark of all has been saved, thanks to the volunteers in the northwest Ohio village of Rudolph.  Thousands of letters flood the village post office every December so they can be stamped with a Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer postmark.  But the tradition was in danger of ending when the post office staff was cut down to one and the work became too much to handle.  Local townsfolk persuaded the U.S. Postal Service to allow volunteers to stamp the special Reindeer Station postmark on the nearly 80,000 letters that come from across the country.  Close to 75 people have signed up to work daily shifts.