USA's Smallest Post Office!

About the USA's Smallest Post Office

Terry Wright, a volunteer and board member with Los Padres Forest Association, which operates the Wheeler Gorge Visitor Center, 17017 Maricopa Highway, told the Ojai Valley News that the copy of what Ripley's Believe It or Not! listed in 1948 as "The USA's Smallest Post Office" draws plenty of attention. "People driving by, honking their horn, waving and looking excited about it," he said.

Though the original structure, built by Webb Wilcox in 1935, served as many as 80 families until 1962, the replica is not a working post office. Construction of the 6-by-7 foot building by volunteers was led by David Rich, a 30-year veteran with the U.S. Navy and retired master chief Seabee. He now works as a civilian at the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center in Port Hueneme.

Rich had no plans or blueprints to go by. "I just had some pictures and did a lot of research on the internet, finding some old articles and photos of the post office," he said. From there, Rich made some rough drawings, came up with a list of building materials needed, and put together a rough time frame for construction. "And then we went from there," he said.

Construction began on March 1st, 2025, funded by donations and a $1,000 grant from the Rotary Club of Ojai West. The structure owes much of its charm to the five signs made at no cost by local signmaker David Sinclair of Alojai Creations. "I couldn't be more happy about those signs," Rich said. "I would never have dreamt that they'd come out looking that good."

The signs were painted by the mother-daughter team of Leticia and Krystal Lopez. "They were our Picassos," Rich said. "Perfectionists in paint." Metal brackets to hold the signs were custom-made and donated by retired Seabee Allen Egelston.

Much of the lumber was purchased at Ojai Lumber Co., which delivered the building materials free of charge. Bautista Concrete Inc. in Oxnard donated materials for the foundation and the use of scaffolding. A total of 24 volunteers worked on the project, the majority from Naval Base Ventura County. "I enjoyed every minute of it," Rich said. "It was so much fun to work with all these people who wanted to be a part of putting history back together."

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