I moved from Denton, outside of Lincoln, Nebraska, to Massachusetts in 2017. There is a member of the Lincoln Stamp Club who was a clerk on an RPO. The post office where I work (Framingham, Mass.) usually has four clerks working the windows, one doing passports, and often another one working the lobby. We are busy and stock all of the current stamps. You never know, day to day, what interesting customer mailing requests will come to the window. Framingham is about ten percent Brazilian, so we ship a lot of parcels to Brazil. I lean on Google Translate to help with the Portuguese–English language divide. I bought one of those larger plastic storage tubs at Target for large envelopes. If you save enough of them, they'll stand up nicely!
This cover came to me from a meeting of the OKC stamp club. I acquired it for the curious corner card. While I have never heard of The Tapir Preservation Fund, it appears to be an authentic non-profit, although no longer located in Palisade, CO. An internet search locates an organization of the same name now in Astoria, Oregon. Also curious is the addressee on this cover, i.e. the Old West Stamp Shop in Denver. It looks like it is still in business, but at a different address and now selling unspecified "collectibles." Ever heard of that or been there @Molokai? Don
That may have been the shop that took over for Dan Stone...it appears to be the same addy. Perhaps there were two dealers in the building; Denver's version of Nassau Street, LOL. There was also a Dan Brown who was mostly coins but also did some stamps. Perhaps eight-ten active dealers in the 1960s in Metro Denver. Old West was Tony 'something' I think. 'In my day' I did most of my business with the fellow who ran the Penny Black off of Colfax and Wadsworth. Very pleasant man, taught me a lot. Could of cheated me a couple of times, didn't. I took a high dom W-F in to sell that I thought was just XF but it was a legitimate Jumbo and he gave me a fair price. I was a bit of a satcheleer in those days and he was my go-to for identification issues. Good memories. Here is what's left in the area: https://www.rmpldenver.org/links/regional-dealers.html
Out of the dealer's dollar box is this 1909 advertising cover from Providence, RI with a backside image. Too bad this one was so roughly opened, but still collectable and destined for my Commercial Covers collection. Don
Another commercial cover I bought for its illustration. I have not found any evidence that this company is still in Denver, or even what it was in 1959. The only Denver reference I could turn up was one to a Hassco Inc., Hardware that was in business during the 1950s. Seems, though, if this was a Hassco Hardware cover, the word hardware would have been included in the address. Better luck with the Rush to the Rockies cachet and illustrations on the reverse. This was a state-wide celebration commemorating the discovery of gold in Colorado in 1859 and the subsequent development of the state. A check on eBay indicates the event produced many souvenir items. Don The reverse:
Yes, lots of activities. Duffy's was the local bottled soda company. Real flavors and for a dime. For the celebrations they made a special flavor, sarsaparilla. Guess I would have been in 4th grade. Hassco was a hardware company. Long gone.
A recent illustrated post card acquisition advertising Foss' Vanilla Extract with a recipe for vanilla ice cream on the front. The recipe seems pretty basic to me -- just three ingredients, cream, sugar and vanilla favoring, though, I guess that is all there is to it. Flag cancel is a Type B dial and style 38 flag. Don
You can still buy ice cream like that, but it is $5 a quart now. Glad the flag cancel book is coming in handy. You should buy more books!
I'm glad I have the flag cancels book! I don't seek them out, but it is satisfying to know what they are within the genre. As for buying more books, I am real close to laying out the big bucks and buying volume 1 of Drummond's catalog of U.S. exhibit cinderellas. Doesn't look like you, Molokai, are going to buy one from which I could ask for specific scans from time to time. Shucks. Drat! Don
It has been awhile since I've posted a commercial usage first-day cover from the Texas Refinery Corporation in Fort Worth, Tx. I found two new ones on eBay recently and this is one commemorating the first day of issue for the Kansas statehood centennial, Sc. 1183. It came with a two-page letter from Percy, the ghostly sales manager, urging the company's sales force on to greater totals. Council Grove is the county seat of Morris County, Kansas, and is about 40 miles northwest of Emporia. It's name derives from being the site of a treaty between the Osage Indians and settlers to drive their wagons through the Osage lands. It was also on the Santa Fe Trail. Don
The cachet by Louisiana Strawberry and Vegetable Distributing Co supplements my small advertising collection of foods on covers. It is somewhat odd for its yellow background printed on a white paper envelope. Also a little odd is the New Mexico cancel on a commercial cover from a company based in McAllen, Texas. Maybe the sender was on a buying trip. Don
Another recent advertising cover acquisition, this one out of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, with a copy of the Gettysburg Address for a cachet. The reverse of the cover reproduces Civil War-related scenes in and around Gettysburg. Unfortunately, the cover does not indicate what wholesale distributor L. E. Smith distributed. I bought the cover for its scenes on the reverse. Don
Sou colecionador de desportos e Jogos Olímpicos. Gostava de ver aqui cartas desses temas. Atentamente Mário
Hi Mario: I don't collect sports or Olympics, but I do have these two collected for other reasons: The first is a promotional item calling attention to the 1960 Winter Games in Squaw Valley, California and addressed to Frank Werner a NYC stamp dealer. The second is a first day cover for Sc. 716, the 2 cents stamp commemorating the 1932 Winter Games issued at Lake Placid, New York, on January 25, 1932. The stamp depicts a skier and the cachet a four-man toboggan run. I may have another Olympic cover or two, but I don't know where they are. Others on the forum probably have more sports and Olympic covers. Mario, I would be pleased to see some of your covers. Don
The front and back Hawaiian scenes have the look of Chamber of Commerce or State Travel and Tourism Bureau origins, but there is no indication of either on the cover itself. Regardless, I purchase this first-day for its colorful advertising. Don
Alfalfa seeds! An unusual cure for arthritis, but, perhaps, if one suffered from crippling arthritis it may have offered hope. I purchased this cover for my commercial advertising collection. It also fits in the medical quackery category. The Rev. Robinson obviously hoped to avoid scrutiny from the postal authorities for false advertising with the cleverly worded phrase, "It might also cure you." I don't know much about postal stationery, but I identify this cover as Sc. U533, die 1. Don
"The Brotherhood of Good Samaritans To Victims Of Arthritis" I am surprised this is as late as 1953; seems almost 19th century. Still, I recall such ads in my Dad's copies of Mechanix Illustrated and Popular Mechanics. My fav monthly column was Gus' Garage if anyone remembers those...and Tom McCall's new car reviews.
Gus' Garage, no. Tom McCalls new car reviews, yes. Wasn't there a magazine called Car and Driver or something similar? Don
I think both Car and Driver and Road and Track are still around... Here's Gus' Garage. My Dad and I used to read them together...I imagine an archive of Tom McCall's columns is around, also. I read a bio of him sometime back; very interesting fellow! http://www.gus-stories.org/
