C of C Winning Eubanks Exhibit on First Federally Issued Postage Stamps now Online!

2013-11-07…The award-winning Champion of Champions exhibit by Gordon Eubanks on “First Federally Issued Postage Stamps” has been posted in the Resource Center under Philatelic Exhibits. Drop by to view this fantastic exhibit and many others today.

Furthering Philatelic Research Online with the Travers Papers and the 1847 Census

September 3, 2013…The U.S. Philatelic Classics Society is pleased to announce two new online resources. Continuing with the Society’s goal of enhancing the website and providing vital resources for collectors and researchers alike, the Society has decided that these two new online resources should be in the public domain:

The Travers Papers – Consisting of 2,787 typed and handwritten pages. These documents were held by Arthur Travers, Chief Clerk of the Third Assistant Postmaster General, and cover the period 1851-1912. The documents provide an inside view with vital clues about the production of early postage stamps, stamped envelopes, and postal cards from the United States, Cuba, The Philippines, Puerto Rico and Hawaii. None of the documents now presented on the Classic Society’s website were included in the two volume set of books on the 1847 issues recently published by Alexander, Mueller, Brett and Hulme. The material now made available has never been seen by the public, so offers an unparalleled research opportunity. A direct link can be found HERE.

1847 Cover Census – Complete with full search capabilities and over 14,000 covers, this census will provide vital information to collectors of this issue, to postal historians, and to Classic U.S. Philately in general. The census also includes photos, provenance, auction descriptions, certificate information, and much more. The Society welcomes any additions, scans or corrections to listings. A direct link can be found HERE.

PRIMER: Finding Members with Similar Interests to Yours

We’ve been asked by members how they can search the website to find other members who share their interests. With the development of the new USPCS website, this is fairly straightforward. When you log in, you will see a menu on the left. Click on “Member’s Menu” and you will be taken to a page called “Members Section”. At the left, click on the old fashioned telephone for “Directories”. On the right of the new page you will see a group of 3c 1851 stamps entitled “Collecting Interests.” Click on that and you will see the Directory at the bottom of the page. It has a search box above it, where you can put whatever your interest is, and it will find all members with the same interest.

Remember, it can only search for the interest that members have added to their own profiles. If you have not already done so, please go to your profile and add your interests. Finding members who share your interests can lead to new friendships and new information about what you love to collect. And it can also tell you who might be bidding against you at auction :).

American Philatelic Research Library Receives Gift of Postal History Research

May 3, 2013…Thomas J. Alexander has donated his postal history research archive and library to the American Philatelic Research Library.

The donation includes Alexander’s entire philatelic library, consisting of many hundreds of books, along with copious notes, clippings, and research files. The materials reflect his broad range of interests, including but not limited to the early United States postal issues, steamboat mail, western forts, and the postal history of Kansas and Missouri. Also included are many photocopies of collections and exhibits, both his own and those of other now-departed postal historians. Over the coming months, the assemblage of materials will be inventoried in detail, cataloged, and stored for use by philatelic scholars.

“Mr. Alexander is a highly regarded scholar,” said librarian Tara Murray. “I am delighted that he has the foresight and generosity to preserve his research material and make it available to future generations of philatelists and postal historians through the American Philatelic Research Library.”

The gift was facilitated by the U.S. Philatelic Classics Society Inc., of which Mr. Alexander was President in 1981-1984. The USPCS provided a grant to cover shipping the 326 bankers boxes to Bellefonte, and the hiring of a library intern to process the collection and create a finding aid.

“Our Board of Directors had recognized that the Classics Society has a responsibility to preserve research materials from the classic period of U.S. philately,” said John Barwis, current USPCS President. “So we were very pleased to have the opportunity to help make Tom Alexander’s lifetime of philatelic work available to future students. We will serve Tara Murray and her staff in an advisory capacity as they evaluate and store Tom’s wonderful donation.” Barwis continued “This project was made possible by a grant to the U.S. Philatelic Classics Society from the David T. Beals III Charitable Trust, Bank of America, trustee. David Beals preceded Tom Alexander as president of the USPCS, and made important contributions to American postal history. We are pleased to honor both David Beals and Tom Alexander by helping to preserve their work.”

The American Philatelic Research Library has one of the world’s largest and most accessible collections of philatelic literature. It also holds several unique archives, including the Daniel Hines Air Mail Collection. The APRL is a public nonprofit that relies heavily on donations of materials. Members of the APRL and the American Philatelic Society may borrow materials directly through the mail and others may access the collections through interlibrary loan. The APRL is open to the public and scholars are always welcome to do research on site. For more information, visit the APRL on the web at www.stamplibrary.org or call 814-933-3803 and select option 3 for the library.

C of C Winning Cipolla Exhibit on Distribution Of The Printed Word now Online!

2013-May-31…The award-winning exhibit by Roland H. Cipolla on “How the Post Facilitated Distribution of the Printed Word 1775-1870” has been posted in the Resource Center under Philatelic Exhibits. Drop by to view this fantastic exhibit and many others today.