From the ArcaMax Publishing, Trivia Newsletter:
http://www.arcamax.com/news/trivia/s-236022-291596
Railroad conductors and mailmen in the U.S. refused to wear uniforms until after the Civil War. In 1844, policement in New York City staged a strike against their proposed blue uniforms. The reason for their opposition was that they considered uniforms to be symbols of servitude, as maids and butlers wore them in the old country.
This news arrived on: 09/17/2007