I've been sending handwritten letters to people the last couple of years or so -- something I hadn't done in a while. I write the address (and the return address) in a diagonal block. That is, with each line indented a bit more than the previous line kind of like this

My name
__1234 Easy Street
____Apartment 5678
______My City ST 1234567

[I had to put underscores in because it wouldn't take just spaces for some reason. But in the real thing, it would be handwritten and no underscores, of course.]

For some reason, I have it in my head that this is the way handwritten letters are supposed to be addressed. But I've noticed that no one else does it. Plus a brief search of the internet doesn't pull anything up. So is it just some kind of weird short circuit in my memory, or even worse, is this a form that's supposed to be used to announce something I'd be embarrassed to find out, or ...? I mean, it kind of looks cool and I find it easier to write than a full block form. Hmm. Anyone?

Doug

Hi Doug - it is how I was trained to do it at school.

I mix styles now.

Chris

I write my address out in a full block. I have noticed that some people put the zip code under the state and zip instead of writing out to the side.

I think I was taught that business letters should be block form, but personal correspondence can be block or indented. I'm not sure I'm remembering right. I have an old secretarial practices book here somewhere. I'll try to find it and look this up.

I usually address letters to pen pals in block form, but I let the length of the lines dictate what form I use. My little granddaughter's name is so long, the address looks unbalanced if I use the block form so I indent.

Judybug

For pen pals, it's whatever floats your (and their) boat. If you want some examples of what can be done, check out the Graceful Envelopes Contest.

I think the USPS likes a standard format, which would be no indentation, do not use punctuation, and put zip code one the same line as city+state (if it fits). Obviously they are pretty forgiving with respect to what actually gets delivered. I think the more legible the address is to automated scanners the more they like it though.

...and here I am using Copperplate to address all my correspondence.

(rubs hands and titters villainously)

Dear HDoug;

In the 1970's; I worked in the secretarial aspect of the Government. It was always block form addressing of the envelope; which matched the style of the block heading of the correspondence enclosed.

The only exception was when there was something like:
Honorable John Doe
Chairman, Subcommittee
__ on DC Budget and Fiscal Development
Committee on Funding and Taxation
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

--------------------------------------
Honorable Tip O'Neil
Speaker of the House
__ of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20510

-------------------------------------------
Honorable John Doe
Secretary of State
Washington, D. C. 00000
-----------------------------------------

Inter-Office was Block style also.

The "Indented" Style was popular for private correspondences and wedding invitations, in the 1950's through the 1970's as I recall. Both Block and Indented were ok.

Perhaps looking at old Emily Post Etiquette books may help establish when both where used.

Pardon the underscore, otherwise the forum set-up would immediately put it into block format; but, there were indents in block form when it was needed to be in formal style.

Just some memories.

Respectfully,
Maria

Dear HDoug,

Consulting a few senior citizens, to whom entertained a lot in their earlier years; they said; if the letter is indented, the address should be as well. Further, the return address should be indented. Otherwise, block form is used when the paragraphs are separated by a space; verses an indentation. The idea is uniformity.

In addition, for smaller envelopes; they said they put the return address on the flap portion of the envelope on the back of the envelope--not try to cram it on the front.

Just some additional thoughts.

Respectfully,
M. E. Wolf

Thanks Maria. I've been indenting the addresses, but I use hanging indents in my handwritten letters. In other words, instead of indenting the first line of the paragraph it protrudes into the margin and everything else under it is indented. I don't know where I picked that up. It allows one to do large and ornamented first letters of the paragraph -- but I never do that. It also makes writing the second line in the right place easier, especially if you don't use lined paper.

I guess I'll continue doing what I've been doing. It doesn't seem as though I am violating convention and inadvertently offending anyone.

Doug

I used to work for the Canadian postal service. I am convinced addressing standards are the same in the US, because both use similar machines to sort mail.

Optical Character Readers are programmed to search and read an address that is set in block form (all lines of the address aligned to the left, no indentation, with the last line of the address containing the name of the city/village, province/state, and postal code in one single line, no punctuation in between each element). OCRs are able to read handwritten addresses up to a point, preferrably in print form. Any deviation from standards increases the cost of processing, and delays the delivery of the mail.

If the OCR cannot read the address on the enveloppe, your letter will be automatically bumped out of the processing machine and sent into another stream. In this stream, letter are videotaped, and coders try to read the address in order to put a printed bar code on it. When that is done, the letter is sent back into the system and resorted.

This increases the cost of processing the mail, from the point of view of the Post Office. It also delays delivery by up to a full day, if not more in certain cases. Large volume mailers get discounts for properly preparing their mailings, in recognition of the fact that this decreases overall cost of processing and delivery.

Fernan

That's a good summary. Also if you qualify for a bulk mailing discount (and there are first classs discounts too, not just junk mail) USPS can be quite fussy. A high percentage have to be machine readable and to a validated address. But that really requires a typed or printed address. On handwritten, they try an automated read of the handwritten zip code and it goes there. If that doesn't work, a human reads it, and they try again, and sometimes again, and again, and again, as it tours the country.

If you paid for a full price, first class stamp, they'll do their best, but it gets there faster if the machine reads it successfully. If you qualify for a bulk discount, meet the rules, or lose the discount. They have a course for bulk mailers. (I belong to a group with a newsletter, we just barely qualify)

That's your right, of course, Ernst.....just don't be too surprised at how long they take to arrive(if at all)

It seems sensible to me to do whatever minimises delays and the likelihood of loss.

I was taught to indent at school as well

funnily enough they don't cover that in schools today (or if they do its ridiculously early on as neither of my two at 14 and 16 know how to address an envelope without help!)

now though I do what ever comes out - often its block because typed post is always blocked

I take the point about the mail sorting machines - dunno what our machines do here but I am guessing my overseas snailing friends have to wait a little longer for my letters!!

Your indentations are pretty much the way I remember being taught to address envelopes for handwritten personal correspondence. I vaguely remember in typing class doing exercises in which we typed addresses in indented form. I think I have some letters here from my mother, sent to me when I was in college and in the Fleet, which she typed and best I can recall without actually digging them out, she also indented the typed address on the envelope. Mom was your consumate do-everything-perfectly secretary at work, and I'm sure whatever she did was "correct" for the day (1960s and 70s).

I pulled out my ancient 1962 Harbrace College Handbook -- saved since high school, because I am a packrat -- to see what it said. It only addressed typewritten business correspondence, and advised that the inside address and the address on the envelope were to be identical and both were to be blocked. It shows a business envelope with the address single-spaced, but I remember being taught in typing to always double-space the address on the envelope because that made it easier for the postal clerks and the letter carriers to read the address. I notice everyone single-spaces now.

The only discussion about personal correspondence says it is "commonly written by hand on note paper ... or on club paper" and it explains in detail how these sheets were to be folded. It even says you can write on both sides of the sheet. But it says nothing about the envelopes.

This was all in the day when mail was sorted by hand. It may be that some time-and-motion study genius at the Post Office determined that handwritten addresses were easier to decipher if they were written in indented form. Or maybe they just liked the way it looked -- not formal and regimented, but casual and friendly.

I agree. I use the indented format for hand written personal correspondence, and the block format for typed business correspondence. I always write the return address, without punctuation, at the back of the envelopes regardsless of their size (on the flap for personal correspondence, since the envelopes should have diamond flaps, the flat ones are for business correspondence only).