Colonial period Throughout the colonial era, El Salvador was part of the
Captaincy General of
Guatemala. Hence, its postal history during this period is directly related to that of the other provinces of the territory:
Chiapas,
Costa Rica,
Guatemala,
Honduras, and
Nicaragua. After the
Spanish conquest in the 1520s, the authorities started sending messengers to the ports in
Mexico and
Yucatán, from where all correspondence was sent to Spain. However, it was not until 1602, that the President of the
Audiencia Real of
Guatemala appointed Manuel de Esteves as 'Correo Mayor de Guatemala y sus Provincias' (Postmaster General of Guatemala & its Provinces). Esteves died the following year, but it was not until 1612 that Baltasar Pinto de Amberes was appointed as the new Correo Mayor. Pedro Crespo Xuarez, who bought the title and office at a public auction, replaced him in 1620. After Crespo, only three individuals filled the office of Correo Mayor by purchasing it: Francisco de Lira y C·rcamo (1646–1682), Jose Agustin de Estrada (1682–1730), and Pedro Ortiz de Letona (1730–1767). In 1767, the Correo Mayor system was abolished and replaced by a government monopoly. On March 1, 1768, the new office of Administrador General de Correos y Maestre de Hostes, Postas, y Correosí was created, a position occupied by Captain General Pedro de Salazar Herrera Natera y Mendoza. Under the new regime, Simon de Larrazabal (1768–1797) assumed responsibility of the royal mail in Guatemala. He was succeeded by Miguel de Ateaga y Olazaga (1797–1823), who was the last Spanish postmaster of the
Captaincy. Early in the Colonial era, the route for shipment of goods and supplies, including mail, was established between Spain and Central America. The Correo Mayor set up periodic routes across the Captaincy territory, and appointed deputies in
Comayagua, San Salvador,
Ciudad Real,
Chiapas, Honduras,
Leon,
Matagalpa, and
Cartago. Mail from and going to Spain was initially received and sent via
Veracruz, but in 1615, the route was changed. Correspondence was sent by ship to ports in
Yucatán (either
Río Lagartos or
Sisal), going overland via
Valladolid to
Bacalar, a onetime Caribbean port, then by coastal vessel up the
Gulf of Honduras, and finally overland to
Guatemala City. The first
mail boat to Mexico and Central America departed from Spain on November 4, 1679, and arrived at Veracruz on March 28, 1680. By 1704, the route to Central America was changed again, so the mail would first arrive at Veracruz, and from there, it would be sent inland to Oaxaca, and then successively to Chiapas, Comitn,
Huehuetenango,
Totonicapán, and Guatemala City. From Guatemala, the route continued south to cities in El Salvador and
Nacaome (Honduras), then north to
Comayagua and
Tegucigalpa (Honduras), and south to
León (Nicaragua) and
Cartago (Costa Rica). By 1754 regularly scheduled horseback or mule couriers went from Guatemala City to León, picking up mail along the way. By 1766, the service extended as far south as
El Realejo (Nicaragua) and Cartago. Likewise, from 1748, monthly courier trips to the north went as far as
Oaxaca, which was the trans-shipment point for correspondence destined to or coming from Spain. By August 1764 a monthly maritime service has been set up by
Royal Decree, and ships regularly sailed between
A Coruña (Spain) and
Havana,
Cuba. From Havana, sloops trans-shipped mail and parcels primarily to
Veracruz, but also to
Trujillo (Honduras); from there, mounted couriers took the mail to its final destination. Regarding mail sent through Veracruz, it was taken to Hacienda de Soto where the route to Oaxaca and Mexico City separated. There, mail for Central America was sorted out, and carried to Oaxaca. On February 22, 1768 the Spanish Crown issued a
proclamation that required all mail to be stamped and initialed as evidence that the legal postage had been paid. While
postal markings existed in a few places in Spanish America prior to this date, it is probable that the impetus to prepare the initial postmark devices for the entire Central American area came from this decree. In an order of 1796 the Captain General of Guatemala outlined the existing routes and established new ones to the south from Guatemala City. Two trips went to Leon on a monthly basis, with intermediate stops in Santa Ana, San Salvador, San Vicente, and San Miguel, all in El Salvador. From Leon, there was a monthly trip further south, ending in Cartago. From San Miguel, two trips went to Trujillo (Honduras), and one trip was made to Tegucigalpa. Finally, from Santa Ana, trips were made to Ahuachapán and Sonsonate. Return trips were made on the same routes with the same frequency; and were scheduled to coincide with the deliveries of mail made from the outlying regions. Starting in 1809 hemispheric packet boat service was organized to run from
Iztapa (Guatemala) via Cartago and
David, Panama, and terminating in
Guayaquil (Ecuador). The first sailing on this course was said to have occurred on March 10, 1810. During 1811, a tri-monthly mail route was established between Guatemala, Mexico, the
Windward Islands, and Spain.
Colonial postal rates From 1620 to 1748 the postal rates in effect to be paid on receipt of a letter in Central America were 2
reales for a single letter, 4 reales for a double letter (i.e. a letter folded eight-ply, but not thicker than a finger), 8 reales for letters two to six fingers thick, and 2 to 3 pesos for a thicker letter. In 1749, the so-called efinger-system was abolished, and by 1763, postage was charged strictly by weight. The 1764 royal order established the following tariffs for letters from all of the Indies to Spain: 4 copper-silver reales for a single letter; 9 copper-silver reales for a double letter; 12 copper-silver reales for a threequarter Onza; and 16 copper-silver reales per Onza. In 1766, a 2 reales tariff was established for single letters sent from Guatemala to: •
Comayagua •
Tegucigalpa •
León • Costa Rica. On November 3, 1796, Miguel de Ateaga, then Postmaster of Guatemala, adopted a new general tariff for postal rates. The tariffs were raised in 1807 to cover the costs of establishing a second trip to Oaxaca. These raises were of ½ real for single letters, 1 real for double and triple letters, and ½ real for each additional Onza for letters destined to territories outside the Captaincy General. The next postal tariff, adopted on October 1, 1814 and promulgated in Guatemala City the following year by Postmaster Miguel de Ateaga, charged for a simple letter of less than one-half Onza, 3 reales within Central America, Yucatán, the north of Mexico, Tabasco, California, the Caribbean Islands, and New Orleans; 2 reales for various cities in the center of Mexico; and 4 reales for Peru, the remainder of South America, the Philippines, and Spain.
El Salvador during the colonial period During the 53 years between the commencement of the Colonial government's mail service (1768) and independence from Spain (1821), a number of different Salvadorian 'estafetas' or post offices operated, from time to time. These offices included Ahuachapán, Ateos, Cojutepeque, Chalatenango, Gotera, Metapán, Mexicanos, San Salvador, San Miguel, San Vicente, Santa Ana,
Sonsonate,
Suchitoto,
Usulután and
Zacatecoluca. Additionally, postal markings are known from
Olocuilta and
Sensuntepeque. Most of the letters or wrappers from this era were used for government purposes, primarily concerning indigo, coffee, tobacco, or other judicial matters.
Central American Federation During the
Federal Republic of Central America with Mexico (1821–1823), no important changes were made to the postal system inherited from Spain. When the Central American Federation was proclaimed, Miguel de Ateaga, Spanish postmaster since 1796, was replaced by Antonio Batres y Naxera. The Federation issued its initial postal legislation on August 7, 1823, and the first definitive postal decree on April 24, 1824. This decree stated the following postal rates for a simple letter of less than one-half Onza: 2
(Central American Republic) reales for any destination in Central America, South America, or the Caribbean; and 4 reales for any destination in Spain, the Philippines, the United States, and any other foreign country. The legislation also granted free postal franking for all federation officials, but these wide exemptions from payment were voted out by the Federal Congress in 1826. The Federation continued the route to Oaxaca, having two trips per month from Guatemala City, and added a third trip south to Leon. According to a post office listing of the Central American Federation, El Salvador had the following 'estafetas' in 1830:
Ahuachapán,
Cojutepeque,
Metapán,
San Miguel, San Salvador,
San Vicente,
Santa Ana,
Sonsonate,
Suchitoto, and
Zacatecoluca.
Independent El Salvador Upon separating from the Federation, each state assumed the full responsibilities of handling its own mail system. However, the regulations of the Federation remained in use in each country until superseded by local legislation. For El Salvador, no information is available until 1849, when Mr. Jose Andrino was appointed as postmaster. On July 13 of that same year, El Salvador established weekly routes to Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The first postal law was decreed on October 26, 1851, and three years later, on September 1, 1854, the first route itinerary for the interior of the country was published. By 1857, all the country was again covered by the postal service. In 1852, a Postal Treaty was signed between Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador. One practical effect of the treaty was that in the free port on
Tigre Island, near
Amapala (Honduras), a postal employee exchanged mail between the three countries. Guatemala and El Salvador signed a further treaty in 1865 with Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, providing for reciprocal exchange of mail and parcels, free postage on official and diplomatic mail, and other procedural matters. It is believed that El Salvador, as the other Central American countries, retained the 2 real rate for domestic and inter-Central American postage for letters of less than one-half ounce until the issuance of its adhesive stamps. It is important to note that mail to and from any Central American destination could be marked prepaid or collect, at the option of the sender. In 1853, El Salvador signed a contract with the Central American Steam Navigation Company (CASNC) to permit mail steamers to call at
Acajutla,
La Libertad, and
La Union. This company ran a line of steamers once a month between Iztapa (Guatemala) and Panama, touching in turn at
Acajutla, La Libertad, La Union, Amapala (Honduras),
El Realejo and
San Juan del Sur (Nicaragua) for the conveyance of mail, passengers, and freight. Each government paid a subsidy for the carriage of the mail. Service began in 1854 and later was continued by the
Panama Canal Railway Company steamers, and subsequently, by the steamers of the
Pacific Mail Steamship Company. It can be assumed that because of these circumstances, post offices were opened in the three ports where the CASNC called (Acajutla, La Libertad, and La Union). == First stamps ==