The United States SPECIALIST
Encyclopedia of United States Stamps and Stamp Collecting Second Edition
Edited by Rodney A. Juell, Lynn R. Batdorf and Steven J. Rod
Hardbound, 769 pages. $35 members, $40 nonmembers. Visit the website for shipping costs.
United States Savings Stamps by Harry K. Charles, Jr.
A presentation of the United States Postal and Treasury Savings Stamp Systems, the stamps and their closely associated collection cards and booklets, and Official Mail stamps and stationery.
Softbound, 253 pages.
Postpaid: $25 members, $28 nonmembers. Visit the website for shipping costs.
Order from: USSS, P.O. Box 1602, Hockessin, DE 19707-5602 or online at: www.usstamps.org/store/
The United States SPECIALIST
the journal of the United States Stamp Society
VOLUME 96, NUMBER 5 May 2025
WHOLE NUMBER 1143
An association of collectors to promote the study of all postage and revenue stamps and stamped paper of the United States and US-administered areas produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and other contract printers. American Philatelic Society Affiliate No. 150
Prologue
195 2025 Annual Meeting Report
197 Membership Anniversary Pins
201 Awards Report
216 Vintage Photo of the Month
Epilogue
236 Plate Number Report by Kim D. Johnson
239 Executive Secretary’s Report by Robert Rufe
240 Classified Advertising
Cvr Index of Advertisers
Andrew S. Kelley, Editor 9038 East 25th Drive Denver, CO 80238 (720) 839-5848
email: editor@usstamps.org www.usstamps.org
Manuscripts, publications for review, and all advertising including classifieds, should be sent to the Editor at the address above.
Forms close on the 20th of the second month preceding the month of publication, as February 20 for the April edition.
The United States Specialist (ISSN 0164-923X) is published monthly January through December by
Features
202 Great Americans Issue, Part XII— Issues Printed on Coated Prephosphored Paper by Jay Stotts
208 Short Transfer on the 2¢ Columbian by David W. Mayo
210 Liberty $5 Hamiltons Send a Gold Bar by Daniel S. Pagter and Doug Weisz
the United States Stamp Society, Inc., P.O. Box 1602, Hockessin, DE 19707-5602. Membership in the United States $25. North America $40; all others $65. Single copy $2. Periodical postage paid at Hockessin, DE, and at additional entry offices. Printed in USA.
Copyright ©2025United States Stamp Society, Inc. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed by authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Stamp Society, its officers, or staff.
Correspondence concerning business affairs of the Society, including membership and changes in address, should be addressed to the Executive Secretary, PO Box 1602, Hockessin, DE 19707-5602.
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The United States Specialist
Founded 1930 as The Bureau Specialist
EDITOR
ANDREW S. KELLEY
9038 East 25th Drive Denver, CO 80238 email: editor@usstamps.org
United States Stamp Society Bureau Issues Association, Inc.
P.O. Box 1602 Hockessin, DE 19707-5602
CHAIRMAN
Roger S. Brody
P.O. Box 5836 Somerset, NJ 08875-5836 email: brody@usstamps.org
PRESIDENT
Nicholas Lombardi
P.O. Box 1005 Mountainside, NJ 07092 email: 8605@comcast.net
VICE PRESIDENT
Jeffrey Shapiro
P.O. Box 3211 Fayville, MA 01745-3211 email: coverlover@gmail.com
SECRETARY
Joel Cohen
10703 Kings Riding Way, Unit T-1 Rockville, MD 20852-5420 email: cohenji@comcast.net
TREASURER
David S. Sugar 4045 N. Harvard Ave. Arlington Heights, IL 60004 email: david-sugar@wsdd.com
GOVERNORS
Lynn Batdorf
Kim Johnson
Mike Lampson
Leonard Piszkiewicz
James Robinson
Robert Rose
Rod Juell
Gregory Shoults
David Steidley
Jay Stotts
Steven Unkrich
EXECUTIVE
SECRETARY
Robert Rufe
P.O. Box 1602
Hockessin, DE 19707-5602 email: execsecretary@usstamps.org
— Committees — AWARDS
Denise Stotts
email: stottsjd@swbell.net
BOOKLETS & BOOKLET PANES
Michael O. Perry
P.O. Box 1194, Rainier, OR 97048 email: MOPerry@mac.com
DURLAND EDITOR
Kim D. Johnson
310 E N 3rd Street, Georgetown, IL 61846 email: westhome1@aol.com
ESSAY-PROOF
James Patterson
1850 North Central Avenue, No. 1400 Phoenix, AZ 85004 email: jhpatterson@yahoo.com
EXHIBIT PDFs
Chris Steenerson
P.O. Box 1818
Westminster, CO 80038-1818
email: Chris@RxStamps.com
FARLEY ERA
Paul M. Holland
email: pholland.thorleaf@gmail.com
FOURTH BUREAU ISSUE
Jay B. Stotts email: stottsjd@swbell.net
LIBERTY SERIES
Roland Austin
P.O. Box 2641, Stillwater, OK 74076-2641 email: RAustin13@aol.com
MARGINAL MARKINGS
Chris Steenerson
P.O. Box 1818 Westminster, CO 80038-1818 email: Chris@RxStamps.com
MODERN POSTAL HISTORY
Douglas B. Quine P.O. Box 153, Bethel, CT 06801-0153 email: usss2010@quine.org
PLATE NUMBER & CHECKLIST SERVICE
Kim D. Johnson
310 E N 3rd Street, Georgetown, IL 61846 email: westhome1@aol.com
PRECANCELS
Lynn R. Batdorf 6005 Kingsford Road, Bethesda, MD 20817 email: hollykids@comcast.net
PRESIDENTIAL ERA
Jeffrey Shapiro
P.O. Box 3211, Fayville, MA 01745-3211
RECRUITING
Steven Crippe
P.O. Box 308, Palmer, TX 75152 email: scrippe@gmail.com
REVENUE ISSUES
Peter Martin
P.O. Box 6074, Fredericksburg, VA 22403 email: pmartin2525@yahoo.com
SECOND BUREAU ISSUE
Nicholas Lombardi
P.O. Box 1005, Mountainside, NJ 07092
VENDING AND AFFIXING MACHINE PERFORATIONS
Dan Ryterband 40 Carolyn Place, Chappaqua, NY 10514 email: djryterband@fwcook.com
WASHINGTON-FRANKLIN
HEAD ISSUES (Co-Chairmen)
Greg Shoults 11248 Frederick Lane Twinsburg, OH 44087 email: coilcollector@hotmail.com
Andrew S. Kelley 9038 E 25th Dr, Denver, CO 80238 email: stamps@andrewkelley.net
WEBMASTER
Mike Lampson
P.O. Box 471963, Charlotte, NC 28247 email: lampson@usstamps.org
— Study Groups — DUMMY STAMPS
Terry R. Scott
P.O. Box 10406, Napa, CA 94581 email: terryrscott@comcast.net
FIRST BUREAU ISSUE [open]
LUMINESCENCE
Wayne L. Youngblood 705 Forest Glen Circle, Prairie du Sac WI 53578 email: wystamps@gmail.com
OVERRUN COUNTRIES SERIES
Thomas Schilling
P.O. Box 432, New Lisbon, NJ 08064-0432 email: cbtkschilling@yahoo.com
PROMINENT AMERICANS AND AMERICANA SERIES
Ron Blanks
P.O. Box 9282, Chesapeake VA 23321 email: rblanks_stamps@yahoo.com
REGISTERED MAIL
Mike Ludeman
P.O. Box 2024, Denton, Texas 76202-2024 email: mike@ludeman.net
2025 Annual Meeting Report
Garfield Perry March Party
March 14–16, 2025
by Roger Brody
Denise Stotts, John Hotchner, and Bob Rufe staffing the Society’s table booth at USSS Annual Meeting at Garfield Perry March Party.
The United States Stamp Society (USSS) held its annual meeting at the Garfield Perry March Party stamp show on Saturday March 15. The event was held at the Best Western Hotel, Strongsville, Ohio. Preceding the General Membership Meeting, the Board of Governors met to review the activities and finances of the Society.
Over the three-day show Roger Brody, Bob Rufe, William Schultz, Lynn Batdorf, Rod Juell, Denise Stotts and John Hotchner represented the Society at our table booth. Several of our books were purchased and three new members joined. The following 28 members attended the show:
Bob Rufe
Steve Unkrich
Ken Nilsestuen
Roger Brody
Lynn Batdorf
Dave Bowman
Jim Wallace
Matt Liebson
Dave Shrader
William Schultz
Ken Srail
Michael Burke
Rod Juell
Richard Peterson
Jay Stotts
Denise Stotts
Dennis Dajczak
Jack Perry
Bill Fort
John Hotchner
Andrew Kelley
Charlie Wood
Karl Edelmann
Scott Couch
David Mayo
Dennis Callison
Wayne Farley
Greg Shoults.
Fourteen members and guests enjoyed a fellowship dinner on Friday evening at Buca di Beppo Italian restaurant serving family-style food.
Board of Governors Meeting
Executive Secretary Bob Rufe reported that membership fluctuation depends upon the number of non-renewals during the period from November to January every year. These non-renewals are reported in the March issue of The United States Specialist. For the latest 12-month period ending December 2024, 120 members, (8%), resigned or were dropped for nonpayment of dues. Fortunately, we gained 76 New Members, and 27 Reinstated their memberships. Sadly, we did lose 22 members in the “Closed Album” category. The Summary for the 12 months of 2024: Plus 103; Minus 142. The Society’s members continue to generously support with membership donations. For 2025, 118 renewed as Sustaining members, 69 as Contributing members and 63 as Patron members.
President Nick Lombardi reported that Mike Ludeman has become the chairman of the Registered Mail Study Group. Mike has already produced five excellent Registered Mail Study Group Newsletters which are all posted on our website under the Resources section. The First Bureau Issue Study Group is still in search of a chairman.
During 2024 we delivered 49 pins to our members. Six for 50 years, 16 for 25 years and 27 for 15 years. A special thanks goes out to Bob Rufe for handling the packaging and mailing of these. During this year we have 4 members receiving 50-year pins, 17 members receiving 25-year pins and 18 who will receive 15-year pins.
Specialist Editor Andrew Kelley noted that while we are having some success attracting manuscripts and have developed a small backlog, we shouldn’t be complacent. He implored Board members to submit articles. He also recommended buttonholing favorite dealers about advertising.
The 2024 annual Barbara R. Mueller Award on behalf of the USSS and presented by the APS for the best article in the American Philatelist during 2023 was presented to Dr. Robert O. Crossman at the Great American Stamp Show in Hartford for his article “I Lived on The Butterfield Mail Route for Decades and Didn’t’ Know It.”
The Hopkinson Literature Award for the best article or series in The United States Specialist for 2024 was awarded to Jay Stotts for his seven-part series about the Great Americans Issue 1988–1990. Lombardi thanked the selection committee made up of Harry Brittain, Greg Ajamian, Bob Rufe, James Robinson and Andrew Kelley.
Our 2024 annual meeting was held at NOJEX in September. Our 2026 meeting will be held at the Boston 2026 international show. The meeting at Boston will also celebrate the Society’s 100th Anniversary as established at the Philatelic Plate Number Association (PPNA) in 1926. We will have booth representation at the APS Great American Stamp
Show (GASS) August 14–17, 2025, to be held at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center, Schaumburg, Illinios.
While the audited financial results of the year 2024 were not available at the meeting, it is apparent that the printing and mailing expenses to produce the monthly publication of The United States Specialist are far exceeding the annual membership dues of the Society. The Board of Governors has undertaken a study to evaluate the alternative possibilities of either increasing the 2026 annual membership dues or adjusting the print schedule of The Specialist from a monthly to a bi-monthly delivery with expanded text.
General Membership Meeting
In addition to reporting the information from the Board meeting at the General Membership Meeting, it was formally announced that a 2026 Edition of the Durland Standard Plate Number Catalog will be released at our annual meeting at Boston 2026 International Stamp Show. The 2026 Edition will be edited by Kim Johnson, with production assistance by Len Piszkiewicz.
The Durland 2026 edition would be the 12th produced by the USSS and its publication celebrates the 76th Anniversary of the introduction of the Standard Plate Number Catalog. The Sterling Stamp Co. published the first Plate Number Catalog, Vol. 1, in 1950 and in successive years through 1981. Clarence B. Durland himself initially edited the catalog, with William Patten editing the later editions. In 1984 under the leadership of the late George Godin, the B.I.A. began editing, publishing and expanding the coverage of stamps. The Society produced subsequent editions in 1986, 1990, 1994 and 1997. The 1997 and the 2000 editions were compiled and edited by Kim D. Johnson, assisted by W. Wallace Cleland, former B.I.A. Chairman, and John L. Larson. Kim Johnson, with production assistance by Len Piszkiewicz has edited the 2005, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, editions, and 2010 and 2014 Durland Supplements.
The USSS Website offers many resources for our members. Paul Holland’s series on the Overrun Countries Series Stamps has recently been added to the Downloadable USSS Publications section. We are planning to expand the membership exhibits available for viewing. Members interested in adding their exhibit(s) should contact Exhibits Chairman Chris Steenerson.
One of the highlights of our gathering at our annual meeting show, is the presentation of the Society’s literature and exhibiting Awards presented at the show banquet. The Walter W. Hopkinson Literature Award for the best article or series of articles, that appeared in The United States Specialist during the previous year (2024) was awarded to Jay for his seven-part article series of The Great Americans Issue of 1980–1999. The Society’s prestigious Hugh M. Southgate Award for the best multi-frame exhibit went to Anthony Dewey for his “The U.S. Alphabet-Denominated Rate-Change Series: 1978–1998”exhibit. Dewey also received the USSS Statue of Freedom medal. The equally prestigious W. Wallace Cleland Award for the best single-frame exhibit was awarded to Gregory Shoults for his Washington & Franklin Coils 1908 Perf-12 Issues exhibit.
Congratulations to all USSS members who exhibited at the Garfield Perry March Party.
2025 Membership Anniversary Pins
The Society wishes to congratulate the following loyal members who have attained milestone anniversaries during 2025:
50 Years
James P. Ferrigno
K. David Steidley
Russ S. Abrahams
Albert Aldham
Karl Anderson
Eric S. Borsting
Albert L. Briggs Jr.
Richard J. Faller
Jackson Case III
David L. DuBois
Lawrence Haber
Bruce Hecht
David Hess
W. Earl Hess Jr.
Roger House
Larry Weiss
Robert Bruce Wilson
25 Years
Marc Goess
Robert D. Hohertz
Gregg A. Hopkins Sr.
Scott Hoppis
Kevin Hurysz
Tadas Osmolskis
15 Years
Mike Ludeman
William P. Lyman
Thomas K. Mathew
James McKenna
Clifford A. Mestel
Foster Miller
Scott R. Mix
Thomas A. Siano
David St. Maurice
Patrick F. Stanton
Frank S. Tolford
Charles A. Van Pelt
Jeffrey Morey
Martin A. Schwab
Joe Skidmore
Brian Sullivan
If you are a member of one of these anniversary groups, we would like to give you your pin at the Great American Stamp Show in August. If you are unable to attend the show, your pin will be mailed to you in the Fall.
Again, thanks for your loyal support of the United States Stamp Society.
—Nick Lombardi President
Twelfth International Philatelic Exhibition of the United States proudly presented by
• The Boston Convention and Exhibition Center is located fifteen minutes from Boston Logan International Airport. It is ten minutes from South Station and Amtrak Acela Express to New York City and Washington DC.
• All show hotels will be within walking distance.
• In a 352,000 square foot contiguous exhibition area, BOSTON 2026 WORLD EXPO will be hosting a large dealer and postal administration bourse, as well as a large society presence and hundreds of meetings/events.
• There will be a competitive exhibition of approximately 3,500 frames, plus other special/court of honor exhibits, as well as a large literature competition.
Recent Winners of USSS Medals
United States Stamp Society medal winners that have been reported from recent shows:
Statue of Freedom Awards (WSP Shows)
Bill DiPaolo
Jon Krupnick
Sarasota S.E. (FL) Thomas Edison and the Bulb
Southeast S.E. (GA) Pan Am Clippers Conquer the Pacific
Lester Lamphear III San Diego S.S. (CA)
Anthony Dewey March Party (OH)
Alan Moll St. Louis S.E. (MO)
U.S. Officials 1873–1884
The U.S. Alphabet Denominated Rate Change Series: 1978–1998
U.S. Vended Postal Insurance (1965–1985)
President’s Awards (Local and Regional Shows)
Winner
Eric Lee
Rockford 2-3-4 S.E. (IL)
Paul Moore Buffpex (NY)
Post Prohibition Beer Stamps 04/07/1933 thru 12/31/1954
The Erie Canal: Its Construction, Operation, Navigation and Commerce
For more information, to request an award or if you have won a USSS award and have not seen it listed in The Specialist, please write to Denise Stotts, P.O. Box 690042, Houston, TX 77269-0042, or e-mail stottsjd@swbell.net. (Some shows fail to send in the follow up report.) Winner
Show Awards Chairs, please note: The USSS Gold Statue of Freedom Medal is sent automatically to all APS World Series of Philately shows. The USSS Silver President’s Award medal is available upon request to all local and regional shows.
Great Americans Issue Part XII—Issues Printed on Coated Prephosphored Paper
by Jay Stotts USSS #10921 | m stottsjd@swbell.net
Part X of this series explained two transitions occurring at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP). The two major transitions involved press and paper changes. Formerly, the Bureau’s workhorse press was the A Press for printing single-color intaglio definitive issues. By 1991, the C, D, and F family of presses were the preferred presses because they shared interchangeable intaglio printing sleeves, allowing flexibility in scheduling the printing process.
The other significant change was a switch from tagging stamps with a phosphor compound at the Bureau to utilizing prephosphored paper. With prephosphored paper, there was no need to add phosphorous to the final printed stamp images because the phosphor content in the paper was sufficient to trigger the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) optical facer cancelers.
The Great Americans
Figure 1. Cassatt stamp from C Press.
Appearance of Great Americans on Prephosphored Paper
We use the term “appearance” here to reinforce the practice by the USPS of not viewing changes in paper, perforations, or other such production-oriented occurrences as new issues and, therefore, not offering first date of issue information for stamps affected by such changes. As Great Americans (GA) stamps on prephosphored paper began to appear, we have no way to provide specific issue dates.
The earliest prephosphored paper involving the GA stamps had the phosphor added to smooth, coated paper, sometimes called “solid” tagging. Later papers that were uncoated produced a “mottled” appearance under shortwave ultraviolet light. The mottled tagging will be explained in the next part of this series.
Solid tagging is the result of mixing the phosphor compound with the coating substance. This combination produced a smooth, even surface where the phosphor substance does not penetrate the paper. The Scott Specialized Catalogue describes solid tagging as “solid appearance” and mottled tagging as “mottled appearance.”
In 1991, the 23¢ Mary Cassatt stamp appeared on prephosphored paper with a solid appearance under shortwave ultraviolet light. These stamps were printed from sleeve 2 on the C Press. See Figure 1. Sleeve 2 stamps were first printed from that press as overall tagged stamps, and the two varieties can be difficult to distinguish from one another when the salvage is completely tagged.
Steven Esrati, on page 17 of his April 10, 2006, publication, The Great Americans (25th revision), noted that one way to differentiate the printings is to examine the gum side of the stamp. “Overall-tagged stamps are on diagonally striated Type IIIn paper; prephosphored paper is smooth Paper IV.” Figure 2 shows Esrati’s illustration of Type IIIn paper. Esrati adds, “Rubbing an overall tagged stamp lightly in a dark room will leave phosphorescent smudges on one’s finger. This does not happen on prephosphored stamps.” The earliest known use for the prephosphored Cassatt stamp has been reported as May 24, 1991.
The 10¢ Red Cloud stamp followed a similar chronological pattern as the Cassatt stamp. The stamp from Sleeve 2 (Figure 3) probably was issued in about December 1991. BEP reports indicate that Sleeve 2 first went to press on July 16, 1991. We can’t specify which press, but it was either the C or F Press. This
Figure 2. Illustration of Type IIIn paper.
Figure 3. Red Cloud stamp from C or F Press.
stamp also first appeared with overall tagging before the appearance on prephosphored paper.
Hubert Humphrey Issue
Effective February 3, 1991, the US domestic letter rate increased from 25¢ to 29¢ for the first ounce. The rate for a two-ounce domestic letter was 52¢, reflecting the 23¢ fee for the second ounce. A new GA stamp fulfilling the 52¢ rate was issued on June 1, 1991. The stamp featured former vice-president Hubert Humphrey and was originally planned as a 25¢ stamp. Figure 4 shows an official USPS color transparency of the publicity photo after the decision was made to change the value from 25¢ to 52¢.
The Humphrey stamp was printed on the D Press, going to press on February 26, 1991. It was printed on solid prephosphored paper. Figures 5 and 6 illustrate the plate block and the biographical marginal inscription.
On Friday, April 12, 1991, Gary Griffith— Linn’s Stamp News’ Washington correspondent—reviewed the USPS initial press release and realized that the Humphrey stamp listed the wrong years for Humphrey’s vice presidency. The biography in the selvage indicated that Humphrey served “From 1964 to 1968.” He actually served from 1965 to 1969. Griffith contacted postal authorities on the following Monday and pointed out the error. The Postal Service wasn’t aware of the error at the time. The USPS’s first response to Griffith was that the 1964–1968 years reflected the election years, so they would issue
Figure 4. Official color transparency of the Humphrey publicity photo.
Figure 5. Plate block printed from Sleeve 1 of the Humphrey stamp.
Figure 6. Humphrey's biographical information as printed from Sleeve 1. Note the incorrect dates listed for Humphrey's term as Vice President.
the stamps as is. Linn’s broke the story about the error dates on April 17. Six days later, The Washington Post reported the story beyond the collecting community. The Postal Service changed course, responding that the stamps would be destroyed, the inscription corrected, and the stamps reprinted. USPS spokesman Michael O’Hara stated that doing so would “maintain the integrity of the stamp program.” The original printing at the BEP cost $580,000, so that money would have gone down the drain if the stamps were destroyed. Would destroying $580,000 worth of stamps have truly preserved the stamp program’s integrity?
The Associated Press sent stories across the country about the destruction of the stamps, further throwing the spotlight on the Postal Service. Congress’ House Post Office and Civil Service Committee also got involved. Pressure from the public also came in, more likely responding to the potential wasted expenditure of a reprint rather than the date error reported in the stamp margin.
Finally, on April 24, Postmaster General Anthony M. Frank announced that the stamps would be issued as printed. He tried to rationalize the decision as something only collectors would notice: “In actuality, the general public invariably discards the margin information, but some specialized stamp collectors save the margins.”
The marginal inscriptions on Sleeve 1 were eventually corrected, and the new dates from later printings read “From 1965 to 1969.” Incorrectly inscribed stamps went off sale through the Postal Service in December 1993. Correctly inscribed Sleeve 1 stamps differ from the original in that they have shiny gum (versus dull gum). The paper is a high-bright paper that fluoresces bluish-white under long wave ultraviolet light. Figure 7 shows the corrected dates.
Additional issues on Solid Appearance Prephosphored Paper
A new sleeve, Sleeve 2, was made for the 40¢ Claire Chennault stamp. (See Figure 8.) It went to press on one of the C-F family of presses and was printed on solid-appearing prephosphored paper. Sleeve 2 was assigned on April 30, 1991, but we don’t have a to-press date or an issue date.
The USPS also issued a stamp in 1991 to pay the new 75¢ triple-weight domestic letter rate. Wendell Willkie, a lawyer, politician, and 1940 presidential candidate, was honored on the 75¢ issue. Figure 9 illustrates a plate block from
Figure 7. Corrected Humphrey biographical information.
Figure 8. Chennault stamp from Sleeve 2.
Sleeve 1 and Figure 10 shows the marginal biographical information. The Willkie stamp was printed on the C Press on solid-appearing prephosphored paper. It went to press in January 1992 and was issued on February 16, 1992, in Bloomington, Indiana.
Demand for high values caused the BEP to switch the $1 Johns Hopkins and $5 Bret Harte stamps from the A Press to the C-F family of presses during this period. The stamps each received new printing sleeves, Sleeve 2 in each case. Plate blocks are shown in Figures 11 and 12. Both stamps made their appearance on solid-appearing prephosphored paper with dull gum. The Hopkins stamp was first reported on July 7, 1992. The Harte stamp was printed in December 1991.
Both stamps were released in mini sheets of 20 subjects as they had been in their original releases. The sleeve layout, downstream perforating, and cutting process changed, however, which created unsymmetrical top and bottom margins. Figure 13 shows a Sleeve 2 sheet of $5 Harte stamps overlaid on a Sleeve 1 sheet where the top and bottom margins can be compared. Note that the central horizontal perforations now cross the side margin selvage, allowing postal clerks to separate plate blocks from the sheet easily.
Figure 9. Wendell Willkie stamp.
Figure 10. Willkie biographical information.
Figure 11. Hopkins stamp from Sleeve 2. Figure 12. Harte stamp from Sleeve 2.
Another Paper Change to Come in 1992
The timeline for the use of the solid-appearing prephosphored paper indicates that it left as quickly as it came, in under a year. The “mottled appearing” prephosphored paper made its appearance in early 1992, replacing the solid-appearing prephosphored paper, so we’ll discuss this change in Part
The U.S. Philatelic Classics Society is a not-for-profit collector organization exclusively devoted to 19th century United States stamps and postal history. Our quarterly Chronicle is widely recognized for presenting new scholarship and discoveries. For membership information and much more, find us at: www.uspcs.org.
Figure 13. Harte Sleeve 1 and Sleeve 2 sheets overlaid to compare the perforations in the selvage.
Short Transfer on the 2¢ Columbian
by David W. Mayo USSS # 11953 | m dmayo@paulweiss.com
The 2¢ Columbian (Scott 231) is a line-engraved stamp. Engraving the die was the first step of production once the subject was determined. The die was used to create transfer rolls; the transfer rolls were used to rock the stamp images into the printing plates. 135 plates were used to print 2¢ Columbians. These plates, which had either 100 or 200 subjects, had a total of 22,500 positions.
With more than 20,000 positions to enter, there was ample opportunity to create constant plate varieties. Short transfers in which part of the design was not fully rocked in are relatively common. Although short transfers appear in several parts of the design, the
Figure 1. Block of four of the 2¢ Columbian with short transfer in the right vertical network, indicated by an arrow.
most common short transfer is in the right vertical network, which is a vertical rectangle just inside the right frame line. Ordinarily, it is fully hatched with horizontal and vertical lines. On stamps with short transfers, these lines were not fully transferred to the printing plates, so the horizontal and vertical lines that make up the network are only partially printed, or printed lightly, on the finished stamps. Short transfers are relatively common on stamps that show the wellknown broken hat (as well as stamps that show the so-called “B” and “Left Dash” relief characteristics1), but short transfers can be found on stamps laid out using any of the identifiable transfer reliefs used to create the plates.
The block of four in Figure 1 has three normal transfers. The stamp at lower right is a short transfer, which appears in the network described above. The stamps in the block all show characteristics of the B relief, in particular small breaks in the lower frame line to the left of the inscription tablet.
Endnotes
1. For a description of identifiable transfer reliefs used to layout the 2¢ Columbian plates, see L.H. Copeland, “20 Added Years of Research on the Two-Cent Columbian,”
Figure 2. Closeup of short transfer.
The
Liberty $5 Hamiltons Send a Gold Bar
by Daniel S. Pagter and Doug Weisz USSS # 10173 and 17592 | m parcelpostguy@gmail.com, weiszcovers@gmail.com
This article analyzes a rare use of the $5 Hamilton stamp (Scott 1053) on a mailing tag attached to a package containing a 20-troy-pound gold bar, mailed March 25, 1963. The total postage and fees were $17.85, partially paid with $5 Hamilton stamps. It is the only example either of us has seen. As this tag demonstrates, tags can be even more exciting, challenging, and interesting than covers, envelopes, or wrappers.
Mailing tags are subject to the same postal regulations as envelopes and other mail matter. Tags were used with cloth bags (often for bank mailings), wooden containers, and irregularly-shaped and small items. The tag provides a flat space to write the addresses and securely affix stamps or meters. Tags often include auxiliary markings indicating postage and special service fees. During the Hamilton’s period of normal use, March 19, 1956, through 1970, these markings would include the class of mailing (first, third, Airmail, Air Parcel Post, etc.). They might also include early Priority mail, which began January 7, 1968. Special services could include Special Delivery, Special Handling, insurance, registration, C.O.D. (Collect on Delivery), and return receipt as some examples. Currently there are no reported examples of $5 Hamilton usages on Special Handling or C.O.D. mailings known during the Liberty period.
Liberty Series
Figure 1. Parcel tag with $17.85 in postage, used to mail a 20 troy pound gold bar.
On March 25, 1963, the U.S. Metals Refining Co. in Carteret, New Jersey, shipped a gold bar to W.E. Mowrey Company in St. Paul, Minnesota, by first class, registered with return receipt requested. Additional information found on the tag is “99 Au” (.99 fine gold; Au scientific abbreviation for elemental gold) and “Bar No. 317.” See Figure 2. The sender, U.S. Metals, was a smelter on the waterfront in Carteret, operating from 1903 through the mid-1980s.1
Figure 2. The address side of the parcel tag. Note “Au-99” and “Bar No 317” notations.
The addressee, W.E. Mowrey Company, received the item on March 27, 1963. Mowrey was founded in 1899 on Robert Street in St. Paul, Minnesota, by William Edwin Mowrey and moved to its present location on University Avenue in 1911. It refined precious metals, and William Mowrey developed a line of dental alloys as an outlet for the gold he refined. In addition to refining gold, Mowrey purchased refined gold for production. The company purchased this bar to produce dental and jewelry alloys.2
We thought it would be instructive to present the process of rating this tag. Rating a tag can be an adventure, and there can sometimes be multiple solutions to the total postage and fees paid. Generally, for a simple registered bank tag, it’s a matter of changing the indemnity amount and the weight of the item to equal the amount of stamps or meters affixed. If one is lucky, the value of the contents is sometimes written on the tag, making the process possible, if not easier, using the available published resources. For our tag, both unique features of the mailing and clues on the tag helped us determine the total rate and the contents sent.
Per Table 36-4 in Beecher/Wawrukiewicz, regarding registry service, the registry fee varies by the value of the contents. (The fee period for our tag began on August 15, 1961, and continued through July 13, 1966.) Starting on August 15, 1961, only sealed and first class postage-paid mail could be registered, per table footnote 8. Also, unlike previously, beginning on July 1, 1957, the sender was required to declare the actual value of the contents, regardless of whether the sender chose postal or private indemnity. Before that date, the sender could elect to under-declare the value of the contents and thus pay a reduced registry fee. Of course, postal indemnity was limited to the declared value in
cases of loss or damage; value above the declared value would be insured privately or would be a loss.
The easiest item to account for is the return receipt fee of 10¢, leaving a balance of $17.75 for postage and the registration fee. First class postage was 5¢ per ounce (80¢ per pound). Since we know the tag was used to mail gold, we can calculate the value based on the weight of the package. Assume (subject to more detail below) that one pound of gold was worth $510.38. At one pound, 80¢ postage and a registry fee, with postal indemnity, of $1.50 (indemnity over $400 and up to and including $600) for a total $2.30. Not enough.
Through a process of iteration, we got closer to the postage on the tag. Ten pounds of gold: $8.00 postage (10 × 80¢/lb.) and a value of $5,103.80 with a corresponding registry fee of $3.25 (indemnity over $5,000 up to and including $6,000) for a total of $11.25. Still not enough. Iterating upward, we eventually arrive at 17 pounds of gold: postage of $13.60 (17 × 80¢) and a registry fee of $4.00 (indemnity over $8,000 and up to and including $9,000) for a total of $17.60. This leaves us only 15¢ or three ounces of postage short. Adding three ounces of postage leaves us at the exact franking of the tag: $17.75. (Adding three ounces of “gold value” would not change the registry fee.)
This calculation placed us within the expected weight and value range. However, the calculation is incomplete, as the mailing was not entirely gold, but also included packaging. The minimum gold value must exceed $8,000 to explain the $4.00 registry fee. Put differently, the gold must weigh at least 15 pounds 11 ounces.
Assuming the package weighed at least 15 pounds 11 ounces, we can calculate the weight of packaging: 17 pounds 3 ounces, less 15 pounds, 11 ounces in gold weight, for a maximum packaging weight of 1 pound, 8 ounces. That is likely adequate for secure packaging. We can get more weight for packaging if we lower the registry fee from $4.00, but that would necessitate reducing the amount of gold in the package; the registry fee must remain at $4.00.3
The tag offers an important clue: The privately produced registry handstamp includes an “X” after the space for entering the registry number. This is the only known private handstamp that includes an X. For decades, a manuscript ”X” after the registry number was an informal marking used by postal clerks.4 It had three possible meanings:
1. The value of the contents was greater than the indemnity declared with postal indemnity.
2. The value of the contents was greater than the indemnity declared without postal indemnity.
3. When the declared value fee paid with postal indemnity was quite large.
After over five decades, these informal meanings changed due to the new regulation effective July 1, 1957, that the actual value of the contents, with or without postal indemnity, must be declared. The first meaning was no longer relevant as contents could not be under-declared. The second remained but with the full value declared when commercial indemnity was used. The third remained unchanged, but what was informally considered “large” grew as time passed and varied by post office of mailing. An example of such a type 3 mailing is the Hope Diamond, which was sent via registered
USPOD mail to the Smithsonian as item 386923X , with $145.29 in affixed postage and fees, including a registered value of $1,000,000 with postal indemnity, on November 8, 1958. No $5 Hamiltons were used.
In our experience, the smelting company would normally have private insurance for indemnity covering the contents. It would pay commercial insurance rates amounting to less than the postal insurance, a significant savings for a large volume mailer of precious metals. This is underscored by its privately created registry handstamp with the “X” indication built in. At the time of mailing, $8,000 would typically not trigger an informal “X” due to the total value; rather, it means private indemnity covers the content’s value. This allowed us to consider the second column of registry fees in Table 36-4: “b. Fee with commercial insurance,” where the sender supplies the indemnity, not the post office.
Using the table for private indemnity, the registry fee drops from $4.00 to $3.20 for the same declared value of over $8,000 up to and including $9,000. This allows for an extra 80¢ worth of mailing weight—one pound. Thus, with private indemnity, the rating is 18 pounds, three ounces postage or $14.55, plus the $3.20 registration fee, for a total of $17.75. Add 10¢ for the return receipt, and the calculated total matches the $17.85 franking on the tag. To justify a declared value of over $8,000, the gold must have weighed (in normal “mail weight” pounds and ounces) 15 pounds, 11 ounces. That leaves a packaging weight of two pounds, seven to eight ounces. This amount of packaging seems appropriate for protecting a small, dense, nearly 16-pound bar of gold.
The difference in registration rates with and without postal indemnity only applied to declared values over $1,000 and up to and including $10,000, with the saving ranging from 10¢ to 90¢.5 Above $10,000 the savings remained constant at 90¢, even for declared values of a million dollars or more.
So what did the gold bar weigh?
In the US, goods are typically measured in avoirdupois ounces and avoirdupois pounds, with 16 avoirdupois ounces equaling one avoirdupois pound. Gold is an exception, measured using troy ounces and pounds, with a troy pound equal to 12 troy ounces. The number of troy ounces in one avoirdupois pound is 14.58. The average price of gold in 1963 was $35 per troy ounce. Thus, one avoirdupois pound of gold was worth $510.30 ($35 per troy ounce × 14.58 troy ounces = $510.30).
Earlier, we calculated that with a declared value of over $8,000, the actual gold must weigh at least, in normal avoirdupois, 15 pounds, 11 ounces. This is the equivalent of 228.72 troy ounces or 19.06 troy pounds ($8,005.20). Gold bars in commerce (in the US) are usually at preset weights in troy ounces or troy pounds. The standard bar size here would be 20 pounds troy, which had a value of $8,400 and would weigh 16 pounds, and between 7–8 ounces avoirdupois.
We now have the actual gold bar mailing weight, 16 lbs, 7–8 oz, leaving 1 pound 11–12 ounces for packaging. That weight of packaging seems adequate to protect the gold bar. By contrast, if the bar was sent without postal insurance, the only possible combination of rates dictates a package weight of 17 pounds., 3 ounces. That would leave only 11–12 ounces of packaging, too little for a heavy, dense, and valuable gold bar.
In summary:
One .99 fine 20 troy pound gold bar mailed with $17.85 stamps affixed to pay:
• First class postage for 18 pounds, 3 ounces—$14.55
• Registry fee with commercial insurance on declared value >$8,000 and ≤$9,000—$3.20
• Return receipt fee—10¢
Endnotes
1. U.S. Metals operated the largest smokestack east of the Mississippi River, which emitted toxic smelting byproducts, including lead, copper, arsenic, benzene, and other chemicals and heavy metals, into the surrounding neighborhoods for decades. It was the subject of a class action lawsuit resulting in payments of $42 million to residents of the area.
2. The W.E. Mowrey Company remains in business today, although ownership has changed four times since 1911. It is affiliated with four trade associations today: Minnesota Dental Lab Association, International Precious Metals Institute, Minnesota Dental Association, and National Association of Dental Laboratories, underscoring its continued production of dental materials.
3. Based on our calculations below of the weight of the gold, the package could not have been sent with postal indemnity; there would be too little available weight to account for packaging.
4. Informal because there is no United States Post Office Department written documentation found discussing the addition of an ”X” after the registration number.
5. For perspective, the Federal minimum wage on the date of mailing was $1.15 per hour.
References
Henry W. Beecher and Anthony S. Wawrukiewicz, U.S. Domestic Postal Rates, 1872–2011, 3rd ed. (Bellefonte, PA: American Philatelic Society, 2011), 58–65.
National Postal Museum. “Hope Diamond Package.” Smithsonian Institution. Accessed April 16, 2025. https://postalmuseum.si.edu/collections/object-spotlight/hope-diamond-package.
Daniel S. Pagter, “Transition from Domestic Air Parcel Post to Priority Mail,” The United States Specialist 89, no. 3 (March 2018): 134–39.
“About Us,” W.E. Mowrey Company. Accessed April 15, 2025, https://mowreygold.com/about-us
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Children’s Stamp of 1956
by Rodney A. Juell USSS #13852 | P.O. Box 3508, Joliet, IL 60434
Although the Children’s Stamp of 1956 (Scott 1085) was officially issued on December 15 of that year, President Eisenhower held what was called a “dedication ceremony” for the stamp five days later (December 20), in the cabinet room at the White House. This month’s photo shows the dedication ceremony. President Eisenhower is shown between Ronald Dias (far left), who as a high school student in Honolulu submitted the contest winning design for the stamp, and Lady Butterfield who advocated for world peace by emphasizing the friendship of the world’s children. Mrs. Eisenhower is at the far right. No “stamp people” were invited to the ceremony.
The plate block shown nearby is signed by: Victor McCloskey of the BEP who modeled the stamp based on Dias’ winning submission; Charles Brooks who engraved the picture; and John Edmondson who engraved the lettering.
Vintage Photo of the Month
I’ve previously told the story of how President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) and his Postmaster General (PMG) James A. Farley came up with the idea for a bi-color airmail stamp to celebrate the 20th anniversary of US airmail service and how, following the development of the stamp, National Air Mail Week (NAMW), the largest philatelic event of the FDR era, was launched.1,2 So why revisit this topic again so soon? The short answer is that relevant new information has emerged, and I also now have additional examples of NAMW covers sent to FDR in my collection.
I’ll begin with FDR and PMG James A. Farley and their connection with Shirley Temple, the famed 1930s child movie star. While I’m a specialist collector of favor first day covers with signed letters and have many examples sent by Farley to various notable figures, I’ve yet to find one sent by PMG Farley to Shirley Temple. However, she is listed as being a recipient of these in Lena Shawen’s book, along with the names of other recipients3 that I do have in my collection.
Also, in 1935, FDR himself said, “As long as our country has Shirley Temple, we will be all right,” and FDR is known to have sent her a signed photograph. So, it is perhaps not too surprising that nine-year-old Shirley Temple submitted a signed entry for the National Air Mail Week poster contest. Figure 1 shows both Shirley Temple posing with her FDR photograph and the delightful NAMW poster that shows her standing next to an airplane holding a NAMW cover addressed to James A. Farley. Shirley Temple’s poster was much appreciated, and Farley thanked her in an official letter, saying that her NAMW poster and the resultant publicity in newspapers “has done more than anything else to acquaint and interest younger people of the nation in our National Air Mail Week program.”
During my previous work on NAMW, I had tried to obtain information about work on NAMW covers by the late Jon E. Drabyk, including asking Scott Tiffney at the American Philatelic Research Library to take a look to see if Drabyk had provided any estimates on the total number of different NAMW cachets or post offices involved. He took a brief look and replied that he didn’t “see any total or estimates for the cachets and POs involved.” He said that he would “need to do a much deeper dive into the resource in order to determine specific numbers.”
However, following the publication of my two-part article in the 2024 March and April issues of The United States Specialist, I was contacted by Mike Wilson, who kindly let me know of his upcoming article on NAMW in Kelleher’s Stamp Collector’s Quarterly. 4 In this article, Mike provides much background information about how NAMW was launched and organized, along with showing fifteen example NAMW covers from his collection, so I’ll simply refer the reader there for details. Wilson also mentions Drabyk’s work as listing over 10,000 cachets, with many sub-varieties. This total is substantially higher than the 4,100+ NAMW covers addressed to FDR included in the 1946 H. R. Harmer auction catalog of FDR’s stamp collection5 and the 6,200+ NAMW covers donated by PMG Farley in the Smithsonian’s collection, that I discussed previously. Naturally, I felt compelled to examine Drabyk’s work on NAMW6 myself and arranged to borrow this from the American Philatelic Research Library.
It should be said that although Jon E. Drabyk lists himself as the Editor/Compiler of the work of the National Air Mail Week Historical Society, founded in 1986, he seems to have been the driving force behind it. The NAMW covers surveyed include the collections of Drabyk, an original charter member of the Society, plus those of other interested
collectors, auction listings, and dealer’s inventory. Information is organized by state for each NAMW city or town and is presented line by line in a field of 80 characters. These are in block letters and numerals/symbols, a format that suggests that the information was originally compiled on computer punch cards. From left to right on each line, there is a bolded catalog number prefixed by a state code for each NAMW city or town (e.g., OH172), followed by its name in alphabetical order, codes for how the cachet was applied (printed or rubber stamped), cachet color(s), type of postal cancellation, date canceled, brief description of the cachet, and a rarity factor. The rarity estimates range from 0 (very common) to 5+++++ (rare). Significant varieties under each NAMW city or town are listed by appending a lowercase letter to the main catalog number. Also included are the images of various cachets at the beginning of each state’s listing.
Much of my own collecting focus for NAMW covers has been on those employing the new 1938 bi-color stamp, and in Figure 2, I show such an example sent to PMG James A. Farley along with the appropriate listing in the Drabyk catalog. Now in my collection, this cover was mailed from Jewett, Ohio, on May 18, 1938. The cachet shows the General George Armstrong Custer Memorial at Custer State Park near Jewett. Drabyk’s listing shows four separate entries for Jewett (OH172 and OH172a), all with rubber-stamped (RS) cachets, two in purple (PRPL) and two in magenta (MGTA). They are hand cancelled with killer bars (HC KLR) and have mailing dates of 16, 19, and 21 May, with the cachet described as (GEN GEO A. CUSTER) with a medium (3) scarcity rating.
Born in Ohio, Custer was a Civil War cavalry officer who was promoted to Brigadier General in the Union Army shortly before the battle of Gettysburg, where he fought gallantly. An aggressive and flamboyant leader, Custer was later killed along with every soldier in his command fighting the Lakota Sioux at Little Bighorn in “Custer’s Last Stand” on June 25, 1876.
listing.
Figure 2. Farley NAMW cover from Jewett, Ohio, with example Drabyk
Perhaps my favorite aspect of NAMW is how Postmaster General James A. Farley challenged every city, town, and hamlet in the country to come up with a distinctive NAMW cachet that told something interesting about their community. Because local postmasters at the time were political appointees, there was a strong response, and thousands of different types were produced. Unlike cachets for first day covers produced by philatelic entrepreneurs, I view NAMW cachets as genuine Americana designed by a wide variety of local volunteers and civic organizations. Collecting possibilities seem almost endless, and one can see how this might become a quagmire for collectors. In my own case, I’ve focused my NAMW collecting on covers sent to FDR and have recently added a substantial number of these to my collection.
Among these is the one from Pasadena, California, shown in Figure 3. With a Chamber of Commerce cachet touting the “Tournament of Roses,” this was sent to FDR by Postman #45 from Pasadena on the first day of NAMW, Sunday, May 15, 1938. Note how colored pencils have been used to enhance the nicely printed cachet, which is signed at the bottom by the sender.
A NAMW cover sent to FDR from the small village of Girdletree, Maryland, is shown in Figure 4. Interestingly, Girdletree is unlisted in Drabyk, and this cover utilizes the “Wings Across the Chesapeake” cachet of nearby Salisbury, Maryland, that displays a halftone photograph of mail being handed to the pilot of an open cockpit biplane by a postal worker. The hand cancellation is for May 18, the day before the Salisbury covers listed in Drabyk were posted as part of the “First Air Mail From Eastern Shore” on May 19, 1938.
Shown in Figure 5 is my postmaster signed cover from Wampsville, New York, sent to FDR on May 18, 1938. This has a printed halftone cachet showing the County Court House, along with a handstamp showing that it was flown to Syracuse, New York. Another of my postmaster signed covers, this time franked with a plate number block of four of the 1938 bi-color airmail stamps, is shown in Figure 6. Addressed to Franklin D.
Figure 3. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Pasadena, California.
Figure 4. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Girdletree, Maryland.
Figure 5. Postmaster signed NAMW cover sent to FDR from Wampsville, New York.
Figure 6. Postmaster signed NAMW cover sent to FDR as “Our No. 1 Philatelist” from Springfield, Massachusetts.
Roosevelt as “Our No. 1 Philatelist” it was sent to FDR from Springfield, Massachusetts, with a cachet touting Springfield as “The Convention City of New England.”
A NAMW cover sent to FDR from China Grove, North Carolina, is shown in Figure 7. The cachet touts China Grove as having the first Rural Route in North Carolina and the third in the United States. There is also an unusual Eastern Air Lines airmail etiquette bearing the NAMW slogan “Tomorrow’s Mail Today.” Note that a machine cancellation on the back shows that this cover went via Charlotte.
Figure 8 shows a nice bi-color printed cachet inviting the recipient to the upcoming 1939 World’s Fair to be held on San Francisco Bay. The handstamp and return address show that it was sent to FDR from Canoga Park, California, (near Los Angeles). Playfully
Figure 7. NAMW cover sent to FDR from China Grove, North Carolina.
Figure 8. NAMW cover sent to “Franklin Dealnor Roosevelt” from Canoga Park, California.
addressed to the “Eighth A’sst Secy., to Franklin Dealnor Roosevelt” it is one of my favorites, noting also that Canoga Park is unlisted in Drabyk’s catalog.
Another California cover is shown in Figure 9. This dual cacheted NAMW cover was sent to FDR from San Jose, California, on May 19, 1938. A typed header shows that it was sent “By Special Flight from San Jose Airport” with a hand backstamp showing routing via San Francisco that same afternoon. The printed halftone photo cachet sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce shows “Blossom Time in Santa Clara County.” There also is a second rubber-stamped NAMW cachet touting San Jose as “The Garden City”
My NAMW cover sent to FDR from Rome, New York, signed by both the pilot and the local postmaster, is shown in Figure 10. The elaborate handstamped rubber cachet sponsored by The Copper City Stamp Club and Chamber of Commerce celebrates the Bastion of Fort Stanwik, where the National Flag was first unfurled during a battle on August 6, 1777.
Figure 9. NAMW cover sent to FDR from San Jose, California.
Figure 10. Pilot and Postmaster signed NAMW cover sent to FDR from Rome, New York.
Shown in Figure 11 is my NAMW cover sent to FDR from Bellwood, Illinois, on May 19, 1938. This has a boldly printed bi-color First Flight cachet rated as rare (5+) in Drabyk.
My NAMW cover sent to FDR from Amherst, Massachusetts, is shown in Figure 12. Sponsored by the Alumni Council of Amherst College and the Associate Alumni of Massachusetts State College, the cachet touts the presence of these two educational institutions in Amherst.
One of the smallest NAMW cachets I’ve seen is the one on a similarly small cover sent to FDR from Woonsocket, Rhode Island. As shown in Figure 13, this cachet displays the city seal, showing that Woonsocket was incorporated in 1888.
Figure 11. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Bellwood, Illinois.
Figure 12. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Amherst, Massachusetts.
My NAMW cover sent to FDR from West Duxbury, Massachusetts, is shown in Figure 14. Here, the bold cachet displays the Myles Standish Monument, celebrating Captain Myles Standish, military leader of Plymouth Colony.
My NAMW cover sent to FDR from Cleveland, Ohio on the last day of NAMW, Saturday, May 21, 1938, is shown in Figure 15. Touting Cleveland as “Home of the National Air Races” also raises an interesting question about the 4,100+ NAMW covers “addressed to the President” that are cataloged in the 1946 H. R. Harmer auction, mainly: what about duplication? Because FDR was popular with the public and Cleveland is a large metropolitan area, perhaps not surprisingly, I’ve seen another Cleveland NAMW cover sent to FDR with the same cachet, but franked instead by a winged globe stamp and addressed in a different hand. I’ve also occasionally seen other examples of such “duplication” in NAMW covers sent to FDR . This observation clarifies that the 4,100+ Harmer auction
Figure 13. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Figure 14. NAMW cover sent to FDR from West Duxbury, Massachusetts.
total should be regarded as an “upper bound” on the number of different NAMW covers sent to FDR . This also suggests that there might be some duplication in the 6,100+ NAMW covers sent to PMG Farley in the National Postal Museum collection.
on May 21, 1938.
Also sent to FDR on the last day of NAMW is my cover sent to FDR from the small town of Reedy, West Virginia. Shown in Figure 16, this bears an unusual winged cachet touting Reedy as “A Friendly Community.”
Mixed frankings with the 1938 bi-color airmail stamp on NAMW covers sent to FDR also exist, such as my registered mail NAMW cover from Montrose, California, “Where the Sun Shines First,” shown in Figure 17. This franking combines a 1938 bi-color airmail stamp with a vertical pair of 9¢ Fourth Bureau stamps (Scott 641) to pay for registration with return receipt. The cachet shows the sun rising over the mountains with the slogan
Figure 15. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Cleveland, Ohio,
Figure 16. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Reedy, West Virginia on May 21, 1938.
“Health Means Wealth” with registered mail backstamps showing the cover was sent on May 19, 1938, and arrived in Washington, DC, the following day.
Another of my California NAMW covers sent to FDR is shown in Figure 18. Franked with a 6¢ globe airmail stamp, the printed cachet shows it’s from Santa Ana in Orange County and that it was mailed on the first day of NAMW, Sunday, May 15, 1938.
Figure 17. Registered mail NAMW cover sent to FDR from Montrose, California.
Figure 18. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Santa Ana, California, on May 15, 1938.
Not all of my NAMW covers sent to FDR have cachets, as shown in Figure 19. This was sent to FDR by the postmaster of the small post office in South Waterford, Maine, with a 6¢ globe airmail stamp on May 16, 1938.
Shown in Figure 20, my next NAMW cover sent to FDR is on 6¢ airmail postal stationery. Again, mailed on the first day of NAMW, it was sent from American Legion Post #57 in Providence, Rhode Island. The rubber-stamped cachet depicts the famed 1636 meeting of Massachusetts Bay colonist Roger Williams with a friendly Indian in what was to become Rhode Island. Williams was expelled from Massachusetts by Puritan leaders for seeking religious freedom, especially the separation of church and state. When the fleeing Williams crossed the Seekonk River he was greeted by friendly Indians with the words “What Cheer, Netop,” a phrase that combines old English and Narragansett words and means “Greetings, Friend.” Williams went on to found Rhode Island as a refuge for
Figure 19. NAMW cover without cachet sent to FDR from South Waterford, Maine.
Figure 20. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Providence, Rhode Island.
those fleeing religious persecution and formed firm friendships and deep trust with the Native American tribes.
Another of my NAMW covers sent to FDR on 6¢ airmail postal stationery is shown in Figure 21. Signed by the postmaster and sent from Elsinore, California on May 16, the rubber-stamped cachet shows boating on Lake Elsinore the “All Year Hot Springs Resort.”
Shown in Figure 22, is my NAMW cover sent to FDR from Columbia City, Indiana. Note the boldly written address. The cachet touts Columbia City both as “The Gateway to the Lakes” and the home of Thomas R. Marshall, former Governor of Indiana and Vice President of the United States under Woodrow Wilson. As Assistant Secretary of the Navy in the Wilson administration, FDR would surely have known him. Marshall was especially celebrated for his quick wit and sense of humor. While presiding over the Senate in 1914 during a long discussion of “what this country needs …” Marshall was overheard to quip, “What this country needs is a really good five-cent cigar.” It was widely reported in the newspapers, and this expression entered the American vernacular.
Figure 21. Postmaster signed NAMW cover sent to FDR from Elsinore, California.
Figure 22. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Columbia City, Indiana.
Some of the NAMW covers sent to FDR in my collection are franked with commemorative stamps. An example with a horizontal pair of the Byrd Antarctic Expedition stamps is shown in Figure 23. With a bold bi-color printed cachet, this also served as a First Flight cover from Willimantic, Connecticut, on May 19, 1938. Especially prominent in New England’s textile industry, Willimantic became known as “Thread City,” a theme depicted by a roll of thread in its cachet.
An especially important NAMW cover sent to FDR from Salisbury, North Carolina, is shown in Figure 24. It is signed by Salisbury Postmaster J. H. McKenzie, who served as North Carolina’s State Chairman of National Air Mail Week. McKenzie was a key figure who coordinated NAMW activities in North Carolina, including sending out letters in March 1938 urging advanced preparations for the event.7 This May 19, 1938, cover to FDR is franked with a TIPEX souvenir sheet, and is “double” cacheted. The NAMW cachet on the right shows Salisbury as the “Center of Industrial Piedmont,” while the East-West First
Figure 23. NAMW cover sent to FDR from Willimantic, Connecticut on May 19, 1938.
Figure 24. NAMW State Chairman signed cover sent to FDR from Salisbury, North Carolina.
Flight cachet on the left displays the Salisbury to Nashville route of the “Old Hickory Trail” with a portrait of President Andrew Jackson.
Interestingly, it was North Carolina that played a leading role in developing National Air Mail Week, especially under the leadership of Charlotte Postmaster Paul R. Younts, who became NAMW ’s National Chairman. PMG Farley had previously asked Younts to organize a demonstration airmail campaign in North Carolina, and this became the “First All North Carolina Air Mail Flights” event during the week of October 11–16, 1937, with 54 towns and cities participating.7,8 For this, special rubber-stamp cachets were prepared, each showing the Wright Memorial in Kitty Hawk with the city name and local slogan below. It was the success of this event that propelled Youts to become NAMW ’s National Chairman, and likely this event also became the prototype for NAMW some seven months later.
In the special case of Kitty Hawk, this also resulted in the only official Post Office Department cachet that was developed for NAMW, which shows the Wright Memorial
Figure 25. Examples of the 1937 “First All North Carolina Air Mail Flights” prototype event and the 1938 NAMW official cachet, both on covers sent from Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
and touts a special “Commemorative Flight from Kitty Hawk North Carolina to Dayton Ohio in honor of the Wright Brothers.” Since I don’t have these cachets on covers sent to FDR , I’ll instead show my other examples, both mailed from Kitty Hawk in Figure 25. Finally, in Figure 26, I show what is perhaps the most intriguing item in my collection of NAMW covers sent to FDR . This was sent from Estherville, Iowa, near the northern border with Minnesota on May 19, in the form of a large (7¾ × 5½ inch) printed return mail reply card from the Third Grade Class at Roosevelt School in Estherville, Iowa. These nine-year-olds (about the same age as Shirley Temple at the time), under the guidance of their teacher Bernice Martin, apparently hoped to receive a reply from FDR , but the H. R. Harmer auction authentication handstamps show that this NAMW item remained in his stamp collection.
Figure 26. NAMW reply card sent to FDR from Estherville, Iowa, on May 19, 1938.
The card itself has a large printed cachet in the shape of Iowa with an airplane flying over the globe and Fort Defiance below, with the slogan “From Estherville, I.A. To all the World.” Fort Defiance dated to the Dakota War of 1862, an uprising of Dakota Sioux in southwestern Minnesota that failed, whereupon the tribes were exiled to reservations in South Dakota and Nebraska. Sponsored by the Estherville Post Office and Chamber of Commerce, the back of this card shows a halftone photograph of the post office and was secured using four wax seals to protect the contents. Curiously, the Drabyk listing for Estherville does not show the black printed reply card, only NAMW covers with a rubber-stamped cachet in various colors described either as “Map of Iowa” or “Fort Defiance 1862.”
The inside of this NAMW reply card is shown in Figure 27. There is a small stick-on label printed in green that shows the same cachet. The reply card has been pre-addressed to “Roosevelt Third Grade, c/o Bernice Martin” with printed instructions to “Fold Card This Side Out. Return Entire Card After Removing Your Souvenir, to the Address Below.”
Figure 27. Inside of NAMW reply card sent to FDR by third grade class, Estherville, Iowa.
The card is also pre-stamped with a 1938 bi-color airmail stamp and at the bottom says, “From Iowa ‘Where the Tall Corn Grows.’” Detailed information regarding when the reply card was received and when it was remailed is also requested to “Help Estherville, Iowa, get an Air Mail record from the World.”
In closing, I should say that the Drabyk catalog6 is a great resource for any collector interested in NAMW covers, and I highly recommend it. However, as mentioned earlier, its primary focus is on NAMW cities and towns, not cachet types. For example, for Los Angeles (CA325), there appear to be as many as five different cachets employed, and NAMW covers without cachets are also included. Also, as comprehensive as it seems, it is not complete. For example, five of the NAMW covers sent to FDR in my collection are unlisted in Drabyk. This includes three shown in Part II from Crab Orchard, Nebraska, and Swink, Colorado, which utilize cachets of nearby cities or towns, and another from Sabasco Estates, Maine, with its unique cachet (see pages 181 and 186 of the April 2024 United States Specialist).2 There are also two in this current article, both using other cachets (Figures 4 and 8). In other words, 5 out of 54, or a little over 9%, of my NAMW covers sent to FDR are unlisted in Drabyk, suggesting that despite its apparently comprehensive coverage, gaps remain.
For the avid collector, approaching NAMW can be a daunting task, and even if limited to a single state, it can be challenging. For example, Drabyk’s NAMW listing includes 903 for Pennsylvania, 677 for California, 640 for New York, 624 for Virginia, 522 for Maine, etc. Nonetheless, the wide variety of locally produced and inspired cachet artwork used for National Air Mail Week offers collectors an intriguing range of authentic Americana, providing a glimpse into what many cities and small towns believed made them special and interesting. In this series of articles, I’ve shown representative examples of these fascinating mementos that were sent to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his Postmaster General James A. Farley.
References
1. Paul M. Holland, “1938 Bi-Color Airmail Stamp: FDR , Farley and National Air Mail Week, Part I,” The United States Specialist, March 2024, pages 115–126.
2. Paul M. Holland, “1938 Bi-Color Airmail Stamp: FDR , Farley and National Air Mail Week, Part II,” The United States Specialist, April 2024, pages 170–188.
3. Lena Shawen, A President’s Hobby, H. L. Lindquist: New York, 1949, page 37.
4. Michael L. Wilson, “National Air Mail Week: A Very Big Deal in 1938,” Kelleher’s Stamp Quarterly, Second Quarter 2024, pages 48–64.
5. The President Franklin D. Roosevelt Collection. H. R. Harmer, Inc., New York, Parts One through Four: February, April, July, and December 1946.
6. Jon E. Drabyk, Editor/Compiler, National Air Mail Week May 15–21, 1938, National Air Mail Week Historical Society, Piscataway, NJ, 2005/2006 (on CD).
7. Tony L. Crumbley, “National Air Mail Week Revisited on the 100th Anniversary of the First Air Mail Service,” North Carolina Postal Historian, Vol. 37, No. 3, Summer 2018, pages 3–19.
8. Tony L. Crumbley, “The All North Carolina Airmail Flight of 1937,” North Carolina Postal Historian, Vol. 16, No. 4, Winter 1997–98, pages 6–10.
Report #???? Freshwater Fishing Lures P1111 ‡ ‡ LL LR 4r x 2c 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8* 3
3 #???? (56¢) Leaves Postcard rate P11111111 UL UR LL LR 5r x 2c 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10*
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This monthly report is used to update the Durland Standard Plate Number Catalog. 3 #???? Betty White P1111
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BUYING IMPERF FARLEYS with GUM. ALL offers welcome! Frank P Geiger Senior - APS Life since 1968 and ASDA since 1974. Phone: 787-6896879–FrankPGeigerSr@gmail.com–PO Box 3442–Pinehurst, NC 28374. [1150]
WANTED—PAYING TOP DOLLAR FOR C-13, C-14 and C-15 singles, both mint/used. Also interested in multiples, flight covers, Zeppelin-related posters, advertisements, etc. Graf Zeppelin specialist. Rob Lehmann email: diecasttoys@yahoo.com or call: 240422-0118. [1150]
WANTED - PHOTO COPIES OR PURCHASE OF Non-Philatelic covers with 80¢ Diamond Head stamp. Plate Selvage with # MUST be attached to 80¢ stamp. Contact Krupnick - 2432 NE 22nd Terrace Ft Lauderdale FL 33305 - cell: 954-547-0544 [1143]
WANTED TO PURCHASE #1053 HAMILTON $5 Commercial Usages. Especially need use to foreign destination. Also doing a survey so scans appreciated. Doug Weisz weiszcovers@gmail.com, 773-9144332. 33 W Ontario St. #48A Chicago IL 60654. www.douglasweisz.com [1152]
WANTED. ESSAYS AND PROOFS. Army stamps of 1936–37. SC785–9. Mick Zais mickzais@gmail.com [1143]
SEEKING USS INDEPENDENCE STAMP similar to Scott #4703 USS Constitution stamp. Bernard Wojnowski; 64 Mariner Rd., Vineyard Haveen, MA 02568. [1155]
WANTED: 730-1, 735, 750-1 USED WITH 1930’S cancels. Warren Mullisen, mullisen@sbcglobal.net [1144]
WANTED BUY/TRADE: MNH BUREAU precancels. Definitive sheet stamps, coils—1923 through Americana series, Scott 581//1816. No Christmas, airmails, transportation, or later. Singles, blocks, plate blocks, sheets, coil pairs, line pairs, rolls. Herman Axelrod, POB 3161, Boulder, CO 80307 hermanax@ comcast.net 303-499-9264 (no texting) [1144]
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Interested in acquiring any amount—a few or a lot. Admit it, you’ve wanted to get rid of these for years. Now’s your chance! Send info to: RBajenski@ hotmail.com or text 713/826-5178 with details. [1144]
WANTED: 1280c DULL GUM BOOKLET PANES with partial plate number. Buy or trade. Clay Stabler, c.stabler@comcast.net. [note corrected email] [1143]
TRADE: UNFOLDED BOOKLET PANE positions and PLATE NUMBERS. Send want list to Clay Stabler, c.stabler@comcast.net. [note corrected email] [1143]
WANTED: SCOTT 611 WITH SCHERMACK TYPE III perfs used on cover. Scans or Purchase email: jonathan.lebreton@gmail.com [1143]
WANTED: INDEPENDENT POSTAL SYSTEMS of America (IPSA) operated from 1970s—1980s. Need any USED material and Mint Sheets. Any correspondence, evidence of stamps used on mail, “magazine door hanger bags,” uniform items, etc. Contact J. Dale Shively at jdshively@icloud.com [1143]
WANTED: US NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING covers, corner cards, 1850-1925. Dailies, weeklies, big cities, small towns. (No magazines, book publishers, bookstores, newsstands.) Prefer Englishlanguage, general interest newspapers (picky about agricultural, religious, non-English, etc., papers). Dane Claussen, danes.claussen@gmail.com [1144]
FOR SALE
SEND $3.00 FOR A TYPED LIST OF HIGH QUALITY stamps. $5.00 off first order. Satisfaction guaranteed. Reed Roholt, PO Box 1006, Beaver UT 84713[1144]
THESTAMPNUT.COM CURRENTLY HAS over 14,325 listings and as always > Better Prices, Better Customer Service, Better Order Processing, Better Packaging and Flat Rate Shipping too! From Scott #1 to recent issues ~ MNH or Used, All Formats * APS, USSS, IPDA * 845-791-0950 [1144]
NAPEX BOOTH #22, JUNE 6-8 GASS BOOTH #326, August 14-17 one stop shopping US, B-O-B, postal history, stationery & BNA Lewis Kaufman 845-794-8013 email: kerik1@aol.com [1144]
Precancel Stamp Society
Interested in Learning More about Precancels? Request a copy of “Th e ABCs of Precancel Collecting” and also receive a sample copy of the PSS Forum, the Precancel Stamp Society’s monthly journal. Contact: Frank Bird III, 1095 Pinellas Point Dr South, Apt 352, St. Petersburg, FL 33705-6377. Email: promo@precancels.com.
United States Possessions: Postage Due Stamps and Covers presents the story of Postage Due stamps used in the major possessions or territories of the United States. Written from a stamp collector’s perspective, the authors address the challenge of identifying the myriad of Possession Postage Due stamps by concentrating on stamp identification while also covering the Postage Due issues of Cuba, the Danish West Indies, Puerto Rico, the Panama Canal Zone, the Philippines and more.
In addition to the text, the monograph contains over 300 illustrations and five appendices which provide information to supplement and further explain key points. In many cases, the information presented is new or, if previously reported, organized in a new manner to help the reader understand the complexity of the Possession Postage Dues.
United States Possessions: Postage Due Stamps and Covers
Hard cover, 352 pages, 6-in x 9-in.
Member Price: $39 U.S. postpaid Non-Member Price: $43 U.S. postpaid Purchased online at: www.usstamps.org/store/ or by mail to: Executive Secretary, P.O. Box 1602, Hockessin, DE 19707-5602
Index of Advertisers
American Philateleic Society (www.stamps.org ) ................................................. 198 Armen Hovsepian (www.USatFACE.com) 214 Boston 2026 (www.boston2026.org) 200 Mountainside Stamps, Coins and Currency (www.mountainsidestampsandcoins.com) ........239 Precancel Stamp Society (www.precancels.com)......................................... 240
Richard Friedberg (www.friedbergstamps.com). ............................. 209
Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries (www.siegelauctions.com) ................................... 215
Scott A. Shaulis (www.shaulisstamps.com) ................................... 214 U.S. Philatelic Classics Society (www.uspcs.org ) ................................................... 207
United States Stamp Society (www.usstamps.org)........................................Covers
United States Stamp Society
The 2020 edition the Durland Standard Plate Number Catalog provides the most comprehensive research source for plate number information on United States postage and revenue stamps, including tax-paid revenue stamps, with listings for overprinted Possessions postage, Allied Military government stamps and other back-of-the-book stamps, dummy and test stamps, MDI "Blue Cover" booklets and partial plate numbers on booklet and coil stamps.
2020 Edition of the Durland Standard Plate Number Catalog 448 pages available in Perfect Bound or Spiral Bound format. Member Price: $40 US plus shipping Non-Member Price: $45 US plus shipping
Order Online at: www.usstamps.org/store