Lock RFD (Rural Free Delivery) US Mail Lock

This is an old RFD (Rural Free Delivery) lock used by the United States Postal Service.

In the United States, rural letter carriers began service with the introduction of Rural Free Delivery in 1891.

Some where I have a US Mail lock that a Postal Historian in Dallas, Texas said he had never seen one like it before. It was found with a metal detector at an old hide out of Out Law Sam Bass. Sam Bass robbed the train at Gordon Texas twice, and the hide out was south of Huckabay Texas. The lock from Sam Basses hideout has the bail broken off. Likely it was on a US Mail Strong Box taken in one of his Gordon, Texas train robberies.

Sam Bass was killed at Round Rock Texas by Texas Rangers (not the baseball players).

For more on Sam Bass ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Bass