Walter E. Parke followed Baird Coffin as Laguna Postmaster in 1953. Under his leadership, the post office moved from Broadway to 570 Glenneyre Street. Lagunans didn’t like it! It was out of the business district, on a hill, on a narrow street with no curbs and had little parking.
Originally, mail was not delivered to homes but to post offices. Although free home delivery in the U.S. began in 1863 in 49 cities, home delivery in Laguna did not begin until soon after the second woman to become a Laguna postmaster, Ada E. Purpus, took office in 1934.
The US Postal Service traces its roots to 1775 when Benjamin Franklin was appointed the first Postmaster General. Local postmasters were commonly appointed to reward political supporters; newspaper editors and local politicians were often named. In small towns such as Laguna Beach, the job often fell to a local storekeeper and the post office was located in his store.