X-Nico

13 unusual facts about United States Customs Service


Alfred B. Mullett

Although widely dismissed as "an obscure draftsman" from Cincinnati, he used political skill to get appointed Supervising Architect in 1866, and so designed fireproof federal buildings across the nation, particularly custom houses, post offices and courthouses.

Centennial Airport

It is an international airport with continuous U.S. Customs services and is one of the busiest general aviation airports in the United States with an average of 874 operations per day.

Être Dieu

Dalí painted "Self-Portrait" (1972) to mark the composition of the opera, which was later auctioned by the United States Customs Service after being seized after Colombian drug lords tried to use the painting to launder money.

Genevieve R. Cline

(McLaughlin, 1940) When the U.S. Customs Service assigned Cline to be the appraiser of merchandise at the port of Cleveland, Ohio in 1922, she was the first woman to hold such a post.

Indian Key, Florida

As a result of lobbying by Housman, Indian Key acquired an Inspector of Customs in 1832 and a post office in 1834.

Jeremiah Colburn

He made his living first (1830) as a clerk, then as a merchant (until 1852), and eventually was appointed by President Franklin Pierce as an appraiser for the United States Customs Service (1852-1860).

Jimmy Haslip

His father, Jaime Haslip served in the United States Customs Service, beginning as a Merchant Marine until moving to patrolman and eventually deputy commissioner.

John Archibald Campbell United States Courthouse

The courthouse was designed to house the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama and the United States Customs Service.

Joseph F. King

King was a Special Agent in the United States Customs Service's New York office from 1968 to 1985, acting as a lead agent for undercover operations regarding Middle Eastern and Irish groups.

Location identifier

Three-letter identifiers are assigned as radio call signs to aeronautical navigation aids; to airports with a manned air traffic control facility or navigational aid within airport boundary; to airports that receive scheduled route air carrier or military airlift service, and to airports designated by the United States Customs Service as Airports of Entry.

Porsche 959

The "Gates 959" was stored for 13 years by the Customs Service at the Port of Seattle, until regulations were changed to allow "Autos of Interest" to be imported with severe limitations on their use.

Samuel C. Wright

After the war, Wright became a storekeeper in Plympton, Massachusetts and also worked in the United States Customs office in Boston, Massachusetts.

Tok, Alaska

A U.S. Customs Office was located in Tok between 1947 and 1971, when it was moved to the Canadian border.


Jeffrey Arenburg

On November 29, 2007, Arenburg was arrested after punching a U.S. customs officer in the head Buffalo, New York at the Peace Bridge International Crossing.

Lupe Valdez

She then moved on to investigative roles as an agent of the General Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and, finally, the U.S. Customs Service where she was a leader in the federal Counter Smuggling Initiative.