Squirrel Hill Post Office

About this location

A few stories people tell about this place

1. At the old Squirrel Hill Post Office, something peculiar started happening one autumn morning. As a delivery driver pulled up, a small boy on the sidewalk dropped his ice cream and stared wide-eyed at the mail truck's mailbox. Every day after that, whenever the mailman approached, the boy’s dog would bark excitedly—and then freeze mid-bark, tilting its head as if trying to understand some secret message. Soon enough, other neighbors noticed the odd behavior too. One morning, an elderly lady walked her poodle past the mailbox just as the mailman arrived. The poodle paused mid-strut, cocked its head like its canine friend, and began barking in perfect harmony with the dog—much to everyone’s amusement. Eventually, it turned out that the mail carrier had accidentally left behind a package containing a crate of singing birds.

2. One foggy morning, a delivery driver pulled up to the Squirrel Hill Post Office and noticed an unfamiliar scent wafting from inside. Curious, he cracked open the door—and found himself staring into a sea of tiny packages, each labeled with a different animal's footprint. The delivery driver looked closer and realized that every package was addressed not by handwriting but by little prints—rabbit paws, squirrel claws, even a few bird footprints. Confused, he called his supervisor, who shrugged and said, 'Oh, that's Mr. Jenkins' new way of organizing mail. He’s been doing it for years.' The driver left, shaking his head, wondering if next time he'd find packages marked with dog paw prints or maybe even a unicorn hoofprint.

3. One crisp fall day, an elderly gentleman entered the Squirrel Hill Post Office and approached the counter with a mysterious package wrapped in brown paper. The clerk glanced curiously as he whispered, ‘This is for someone who’s been very good…’ The clerk leaned closer, his eyes twinkling with curiosity. 'Who exactly has been naughty or nice?' he asked softly. The old man smiled mysteriously and replied, 'Why, that would be telling!' And just like that, the package was posted, never to be seen again—leaving behind only whispers of what might have been inside.

4. At dawn, when most people were still dreaming, a delivery driver pulled up to the Squirrel Hill Post Office. The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the air carried the scent of autumn leaves. But today, something unusual awaited him inside. Inside, a regular customer was already there, reading his morning paper with one eye open. 'Morning,' he yawned. ‘Did you know,’ added the delivery driver, grinning, 'that squirrels sometimes steal letters from our mailboxes?' The old man chuckled, shaking his head. 'Welcome to Pittsburgh, son.'