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All the United States North Carolina Cashiers Grimshawes Post Office

Grimshawes Post Office

This 5-by-6-foot wooden hut is the smallest historic post office in the U.S.

Cashiers, North Carolina

Added By
Meg Neal
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Grimshawes Post Office.   Nick Breedlove
Grimshawes Post Office.   Nick Breedlove
Inside Grimshawes.   Nick Breedlove
American flag inside Grimshawes.   Nick Breedlove
Old post office sign and informational plaque.   Nick Breedlove
Historical information and photos hanging inside the hut.   Nick Breedlove
Grimshawes Post Office just off Whiteside Cove Road.   Nick Breedlove
Postcard of Grimshawes Post Office, circa 1930-1945.   public domain
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About

Tucked within the Blue Ridge Mountains of southwestern North Carolina you’ll find a small wooden hut standing next to an American flag. The interior is marked with yellow letters boasting its claim to fame: the smallest U.S. post office.

The historic Grimshawes Post Office is a tiny 5-by-6-foot building that served the area's postal needs for 75 years, from 1878 up until 1953. In its day it was reported to be the smallest operational post office in the United States (a title now held by Ochopee, Florida). 

The little hut is located in the valley below Whiteside Mountain, and in fact was called Whiteside Cove Post Office when it first opened. It was renamed Grimshawes in 1909 after its first postmaster, Thomas Grimshawe, who owned a grist mill and a large parcel of land in the area.

Grimshawes ceased operation in 1953, when all third class post offices were closed under President Eisenhower. It was used for a spell as a ticket booth and postcard stand at the top of Whiteside Mountain, but eventually fell into disrepair. The little landmark was happily restored by a group of locals and is located just off the picturesque Whiteside Cove Road.

The interior is adorned with little more than a tattered American flag and a single small wooden chair. In the old building's new life as a quaint roadside attraction, it is open every day to visitors from the nearby towns of Cashiers and Highlands—you’ll just have to take your postcards somewhere else.

Related Tags

Postal History Mail Mountains Local History

Know Before You Go

Grimshawes is easily accessed via a pull-off along Whiteside Cove Road. It's about 5.6 miles from the center of Cashiers, the nearest town.

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Meg

Published

August 6, 2018

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  • https://www.romanticasheville.com/grimshawes
  • http://www.lakeglenvillecabins.com/grimshawes-historic-post-office/
Grimshawes Post Office
3798 Whiteside Cove Rd
Cashiers, North Carolina
United States
35.066412, -83.119919
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