Boy Scouts Getting Into Pershing Week and Selling War Stamps

From the September 12, 2018, MidWeek  "Looking Back."

1918, 100 Years Ago.

"When you pass the booth of the Boy Scouts at the Leslie's building, stop and ask the boys what they are doing.

"They will inform you that it is Pershing week and they are so enthused that they will induce you to show your patriotism.  They reported sales of the stamps as 'pretty good' this afternoon."

Supporting the War Effort.  --DaCoot

"For Sammy in France" 1917

From the August 23, 2017, MidWeek (DeKalb Couty, Illinois)  "Looking Back."

1917, 100 Years Ago.

"General Pershing has sent the request that we send our papers and magazines to the boys in France.  It is only necessary to roll two or three together, tie securely, write on the margin, "For Sammy in France," and put on a one cent postage stamp.

Just think how we miss our morning paper if for any reason it does not reach us each morning by breakfast time.  The boys will be very greatly pleased even though the news be a week or two old."

The War Effort.  --DaCoot

Are Stamps Licked?-- Part 4: Titanic Souvenir

Some other stamps on dispplay:

**  Patriot names.  AS the declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776, a letter made its way to that document's most famous signatory, John Hancock.  It was addressed to "The Hon. John Hancock Esq. In Philadelphia.  (What, no Zip Code?)

**  A famous mistake.  A rare 1918 misprint celebrating the first airmail flight shows an upside down JN-4 airplane, or Jenny"; a single "inverted Jenny" sold in 2007 for nearly $1 million.    The museum has a set of 4.

**  (Fe)Mail Milestones.  On her historic solo flight across the Atlantic in 1932, Amelia Earhart carried mail postmarked before and after landing.  This one was stamped Trans-Atlantic Non-Stop  Solo-Flight  First Aviatrix  Amelia Earhart Flight  Newfoundland-Ireland May 20-1932- May 21 and was addressed to Bernt Balchen, Hasbrouch Heights, New Jersey.

**  Shipwreck souvenir.  Before an iceberg sunk the grand Titanic in 1912, one of its first-class passengers mailed a letter written on the ship's stationery.  It says White Star Line and shows the company's flag.  It was addressed to M.W. Defmeyer S A 36  Berlin Germany.

--Cootstamper.

Are Stamps Licked?-- Part 3: Some More Interesting Stuff

Also in the museum's new stamp exhibition:

**  Stamps from the 1800s European colonies.

**  A letter carried by a Pony Express rider who was caught and scalped by Indians in 1860.  Settlers found it and sent it along with a note on the envelope describing circumstances.

**  A seared letter that was on the Hindenburg when it caught fire in 1937.  Burned letters were salvaged from the wreckage and all delivered.  This one was going to Mr. John Schoonbrod, 320 W. 107 th St., New York, USA.

**  The registered envelope in which jeweler Harry Winston shipped the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian, insuring the package for $1 million.

--DaCoot

Are Stamps Licked?-- Part 2 The New Smithsonian William H. Gross Stamp Gallery

Inside are 20,000 stamps, including examples from every single country that has ever had them, including some like Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) which no longer exist.  There is also the only letter ever postmarked from the moon and one sent to John Hancock on July 4, 1776.

Also, there is a letter recovered by settlers after Indians captured the Pony Express rider carrying it.

Of course, there is a block of "inverted Jenny" stamps, like a set that sold for nearly $3 million,  which feature an upside down airplane.  It became one of the most famous ever U.S. stamps after a 1918 misprint and quick recall.

Lick Me.  --Cooter

Are Stamps Licked?-- Part 1: Is Stamp Collecting On Its Way Out?

From the Nov. 4, 2013, Time Magazine "Are Stamps Licked?  by Katy Steinmetz.

Baltimore's Philatelic Society had their 75th annual stamp show did not have a lot of young collectors.  But stamp collecting isn't over.  Rarest stamps are increasing in value and the hobby is spreading abroad.  But, in the U.S., philately is down.  Membership in the largest stamp society continues to wane.

Billionaire Bill Gross, who owns the world's most-valuable private collection says, "It's not necessarily obvious that kids even know what a stamp is."  Not surprising in these days of e-mailing and texting.  He even gave $10,000,000 to build a new 12,000-square-ft. stamp exhibit at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum in Washington, D.C.

Revenue at philatelic auctions is up.  Collections worth $5-$10 million were almost unheard of before, but now there are several dozen.

Doing well in the world, but not so much at home.  The market lacks young collectors to make it thrive.  The Boy Scouts issue a merit badge for stamp collecting.  In 2012 it issued 1,000 of them (compared with 22,000 for basketry and 92,000 for first aid).

New memberships at the American Philatelic Society have shrunk about 30% after peaking in the 1980s.

--DaCoot

New England Coastal Lighthouses-- Part 3

NEW LONDON HARBOR:

"New London Harbor is Connecticut's oldest and tallest lighthouse. Originally established in 1761, the tower was financed by a lottery held by the Connecticut colonial legislature. The present lighthouse, built in 1801, was the one of America's earliest ones with a flashing beacon."

BOSTON HARBOR:

Boston Harbor Light, North America's first true light station, was established in 1716. The lighthouse was the last in the United States to be automated-- in 1998-- and is the only remaining American lighthouse with a resident keeper employed by the federal government. It was designated a National Historical landmark in 1964."

So, There You Have All Five New Lighthouse Stamps. --Cooter

New England Coastal Lighthouses-- Part 2

PORTSMOUTH HARBOR:

"The first navigational aid in New Hampshire was created in 1771, in the state's only deep-water port, Portsmouth Harbor. The present lighthouse, a 48-foot tower of bolted cast-iron plates built in 1878, was constructed inside its predecessor, a wooden tower that had succumbed to deterioration."


POINT JUDITH:

"Originally established in 1810 to guard a partucularly dangerous part of the Atlantic coast of Rhode Island. Point Judith's current lighthouse was built in 1857. In 2000, the lighthouse underwent a renovation using brownstone quarried from the same area as the 1857 tower."

Punch Yer Lights Out. --DaCoot

New England Coastal Lighthouses-- Part 1: Portland Head

From the back of the U.S. Postal stamp sheet, US Postal Service.

"Solitary and mysterious, lighthouses have fascinated people for centuries. Celebrating the eternal appeal of these historic becaons, the U.S. Postal Service continues the popular series of lighthouse stamps. Sought after by collectors and beloved by the public, this latest issuance in the series celebrates New England Coastal Lighthouses."

PORTLAND HEAD:

"Maine's oldest lighthouse, Portland Head has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1873. The lighthouse tower, constructed in 1791, and the Victorian keepers' house, now the home of a museum, are among the most beautiful-- and most frequently photographed-- stations in the United States."

Keeping the Light On. --Cooter

Lighthouse Stamps Out-- Part 1: Boston Light

From the July 12, 2013, USA Today "Massachusetts: Stamps shine a light on an American icon" by Molly Vorwerck.

"Lighthouse are icons of a bygone American seascape. Now the U.S. Postal Service hopes to capitalize on their appeal with its sixth series in a collection of stamps commemorating some of America's most historic lighthouses."

The 46-cent "forever" stamps were released July 12th and showcase five New England lighthouses. (I have my sheet already. Something else I don't need to collect.)

The Boston Harbor lighthouse, known as the Boston Light, was built in 1716 and is the oldest one in the country and the only one still run by a keeper. Sally Snowman does the job, even though it is fully automated.
More to Come. --DaCoot

US Historical Stamps

I received mail from the Mystic Stamp Company from Camden, New York offering 100 mint-fresh US stamps for $5 with free s&h.

I'm not much into stamp-collecting, but like to look at them.

One was a 4-cent 1962 Project Mercury, the first US man-in-space program.

Others: 1/2 cent Franklin from the 1938 Presidential series.

Six "Overrun Countries" from 1943-1944.

A one-cent Beardless Lincoln from 1959.

Very first "Love" stamp from 1973.

One "Honoring Those Who Helped Fight Polio."

An Ohio Sesquicentennial stamp

A 3 cents "Honoring Those Who Have Served."

3-cent Red Cross "Founded-1864"

1-cent Stamp honoring Jones of the Bon Homme Richard and Barry of the Lexington Revolutionary War Naval officers and ships.

One for Bunker Hill

22-cent Statue of Liberty Liberty 1886-1986

4-cent 1960 Pony Express

Quite a Bit of History in Those Stamps. --Cooter

Some New 2009 Commemorative Stamps

The year 2009 will see a series of stamps looking back at the age of black and white television. One stamp will feature "I Love Lucy" where Lucy and Ethel work at a chocolate assembly line. In another, Sgt. Joe Friday will say "Just the Facts" "Dragnet-style. Groucho Marx wants to know the secret word, Ozzie & Harriett, Ed Sullivan, the Honeymooners and others will be out as well.

Sadly, the current way-expensive 42 cent stamp will be EVEN More expensive in May.

There will be Alaska, Hawaii, and Oregon anniversary issues as well.

This being Lincoln's birth bicentennial, there will also be four for him as well.

Thank Goodness for Those Peel and Apply Stamps These Days. --Da Coot