Nathan T. Velar

Nathan Thomas Velar (September 12, 1858 – August 21, 1928), also known as N. T. Velar, was an American postmaster, civic leader, businessman, and elected official. By the late 19th-century, he was the first and only Black postmaster in the State of Pennsylvania. Velar served on the executive committee of Booker T. Washington's National Negro Business League.

Early life Nathan Thomas Velar was born on September 12, 1858, in Fredericktown, Missouri. and together they had 11 children.

Career From 1887 to 1893, Velar worked as a wire drawer at Braddock Wire & Steel Company (later Consolidated Wire & Steel Company) in Braddock, Pennsylvania. He was the first and only Black postmaster in the state of Pennsylvania by the late 19th-century.

He also owned and operated a general store on Bessemer Avenue in East Pittsburgh. In 1889, he was elected as a school director, and a year later he was elected as a member of the Borough Council of Rankin. Velar served on the executive committee of the National Negro Business League founded by Booker T. Washington, and held a lifetime membership.

Velar died on August 21, 1928, in Pittsburgh, and was buried at All Saints Braddock Catholic Cemetery.