Category: Collecting Topics

Star Route Awards for GMCSC

Posted on by Pat Morgan

The Perf-Dispatch newsletter of the Greater Mound City Stamp club was also judged, in addition to 27 others, and was awarded a Large Vermeil Medal.

The Greater Mound City Stamp Club website was judged, in addition to 28 others, and was awarded a Large Gold Medal.  This ranking puts it in the top 5 of all websites judged.

The Perf-Dispatch newsletter of the Greater Mound City Stamp club was also judged, in addition to 27 others, and was awarded a Large Vermeil Medal.

In 2022, hopefully the GMCSC will continue to impress and grow philately through our website and newsletter.

Lindbergh’s Cat

Posted on by Lesa Morgan

In mid-1927 the entire world, and certainly St. Louis, celebrated Charles “Lucky” Lindbergh for his daring flight across the Atlantic.  The flight won him not only fame but also fortune—the $25,000 Orteig prize which had gone unclaimed since it was first offered in 1919.  But had it not been for a Spanish Air Mail stamp issued in 1930, we might never have known of Lindbergh’s cat, Patsy.


The 1 Peseta air mail stamp commemorating Lindbergh’s flight was issued October 10, 1930 in Seville, Spain; one of a series of eight for the Spanish-American Exhibition, or World’s Fair, held that year.  It features a vignette of Lindbergh, the Statue of Liberty, the Spirit of St. Louis, and Patsy’s silhouette–what is thought to be the first domestic cat featured on postage– looking on at the departing plane.

Spain #C56, perf 14

Numerous articles assert that Patsy was a frequent passenger on Lindbergh’s flights and could often be found curled up in his plane’s tail in the hangar.  When asked why Patsy did not join him for the famed trans-Atlantic flight, however, Lindbergh stated, “It’s too dangerous a journey to risk the cat’s life.”  Instead he opted to take a “Felix The Cat” doll (from the 1919 Feline Follies cartoon) as his mascot.

The air mail stamp itself was created using two plates; one for the vignette of Lindbergh, with the second plate containing the remainder of the design.  This resulted in the printing of many unauthorized versions, including these examples:

Left to right:  Lindbergh vignette missing, double-print with upside down vignette, upside down vignette.

It was 22 years later before the next cat appeared on a postage stamp.  In fact, cats did not become common on stamps until the 1960s, although the American Topical Association now lists 2,968 cat stamps in 37 categories (mostly based on breed).

Karl Hennig Covers

Posted on by John Deutch
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WWII and the Gold Supply: Role of the USS Vincennes

Posted on by Pat Morgan

Authored By: Edward Bayham

In the February 2021 issue of the Perf-Dispatch, John Marquardt described the role of the Royal Navy in
transferring British gold reserves to Canada for safe keeping during WW II. Did you know that the U.S.
Navy played a role as well?

Germany invaded France, Holland, and Belgium on May 10, 1940. 405 tons of French gold reserves were
removed to Halifax Canada on a French aircraft carrier and two fast cruisers. Another 212 tons of gold
were transported to Casablanca in French Morocco on May 28 and transferred to the U.S. Navy’s
armored cruiser U.S.S. Vincennes (CA-44) that brought it to New York. The illustrated cover documents the
ship’s return via the Azores.

In March 1941 the U.S.S. Vincennes called on Pernambuco, Brazil and continued on to Cape Town, South
Africa. It returned to New York City with ₤67.5 million in British gold bullion to pay for arms purchased
from the United States under the Lend Lease Act of March 1941.

The mystery solved, or somewhat solved.

Posted on by John Deutch

In a “What Is It?” article in last month’s Perf- Dispatch, I raised a question about three Public Herald labels that I discovered in an old stock book.  I was curious about the labels, and I wondered what they might be.

Since then I have spent some time researching Public Herald labels. I sent letters of inquiry to four dealers, people who might be able to tell me about the labels or who might put me in touch with someone who could help me.

I also spent time online—lots of time.  And it was during my online research that I discovered—almost by accident—that there was an article titled The Public Herald “Seals” that appeared in the January – February 2009 (Volume: 88 Number:1) issue of the COLLECTORS CLUB PHILATELIST, a publication that I was unaware of.  I sent an email off to the APRL to see if this was a journal that might be in the library. Marsha Garman found the journal, and emailed me a copy of the article.

Jim Kotanchik

Jim Kotanchik

The five-page article was written by Jim Kotanchik, who I can only describe as a truly eminent philatelist.  His article, The Public Herald “Seals”, answered some but not all of my questions.  I decided to contact Jim Kotanchik, only to learn that he died in 2011.  Kotanchik authored POST OFFICE SEALS OF THE UNITED STATES AND POSSESSIONS (ISBN-10: 0977654907).  This is a massive 350-page book, and it is wickedly expensive, but I hope to find a discounted copy.  Note that I am now referring to the Public Herald labels as “seals”, not “labels”.

It was about this same time that Eric Jackson, one of the dealers I contacted, sent me a copy of an article by Jim Kotanchik that appeared in THE OFFICIAL SEAL NEWSLETTER (date unknown).  Another publication unknown to me. This article, also titled “The Public Herald Seals”, appears to be an earlier version of what was printed in the issue of the COLLECTORS CLUB PHILATELIST.

Kotanchik tells us that the Public Herald seals were the work of Louis Lum Smith, a Philadelphia publisher (the PUBLIC HERALD and the AGENT’S HERALD).  They were, in effect, post office seals that were provided to fourth class post offices as a kind of gimmick to encourage subscriptions to Smith’s two newspapers.

At our September club meeting I’ll have more information and copies of the COLLECTORS CLUB PHILATELIST article.  I will also have the Public Herald seals and some covers/cards to share with you—“show and tell”.  My thanks to Phil Schorr for continuing to encourage me in my effort to uncover the story behind the Public Herald seals, and to Nathan Esbeck who discovered a Public Herald seal on a cover offered on Ebay.

Editor’s Note: One of our surmises at the last meeting, the one concerning bundling, was mostly correct. However, there is more to the story. Don’t miss hearing more at our upcoming meeting.