LYNN — The Willow Street post office becomes the city’s center of attention Friday at 11 a.m. when the building will be dedicated in honor of former Postmaster and Mayor Thomas P. Costin Jr.
Willow Street will be closed between Oxford and Liberty streets for the dedication beginning at 9:30 a.m. and reopen at about 1 p.m.
Costin served as Lynn postmaster from 1961 to 1992, working in the corner office of the Willow Street building, with responsibility for postal service encompassing Lynn, Lynnfield, Nahant, Saugus and Swampscott.
The dedication ceremony will be headed by U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey and U.S. Rep. Seth W. Moulton.
Prompted by Lynn Business Partnership President Ted Grant’s suggestion that the building be named after Costin, Moulton ran with the idea and introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018.
A Nahant resident, Costin’s life has spanned public service, elected office and social service advocacy. Elected city councilor in 1947 at the age of 21, Costin went on to become Lynn’s mayor at age 29, the youngest ever elected.
He was a friend and advisor to President John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F. and Edward M. Kennedy.
His postal service accomplishment extended well beyond running an efficient mail delivery operation. Costin helped spearhead the U.S. Postal Service’s reorganization from 1967-1969. In 1962, he helped found Mount Pleasant Hospital, a pioneering facility on Granite Street in Lynn dedicated to alcohol and drug addiction treatment, a model used by the postal service nationwide.
Retirement failed to slow Costin’s pace: He has served as the Lynn Business Partnership’s Transportation Committee chair as a tireless advocate for extending Blue Line rapid transit service to Lynn.
To quote U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, “Tom Costin is an exemplary public servant who had dedicated his life to his country, the Commonwealth and the City of Lynn.”
Mayor Thomas M. McGee will deliver greetings from the city during the dedication and Postmaster Dean Baker will serve as USPS host.
