One thing we’ve never been able to figure out is when and how politicians started using direct mail. Some sources say it was during the 1960s, when large donor and voter lists became available.
And that may be true of political fundraising. But research shows that candidates have been using the mails to get the vote out for more than a century.
Take New York Mayor Seth Low. In 1903, he sent a postcard reminding people to vote. It featured a picture of the Statue of Liberty and the headline: