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Spring 2012 Newsletter
A FAVOURITE COVER
Dennis Boot
A British Levant Colonial Overprint: British stamps used in the British Post offices of the former Turkish empire were overprinted in Turkish currency to avoid speculation following the depreciation of the Turkish piastre in 1884. This cover has a GB 2 ½ d Jubilee Purple on blue, overprinted with ‘40 paras’, cancelled with British Post Office Constantinople 10 June 1898, addressed to Leith N.B. (Northern Britain, i.e. Scotland), oval stamp on reverse from Blair Campbell & Co., Constantinople. Edinburgh back stamp for 14.6.98.
THE END OF HERM STAMPS
Douglas Harvey
On 17 September 1969, Major Peter Wood, the tenant of Herm, issued a set of stamps that were designed by Jennifer Toombs and printed by Harrisons. Quality in design and manufacture are often lacking in local ‘Cinderella’ issues, but not in this instance. This beautiful set of stamps depicted the centuries of Channel Islands shipping and included a Norman longship (2d), an 18th century vessel (6d), a cutter (1s 6d), a paddle steamer (2s) and the BR service steamer Sarnia (3s). Total value 7s 3d. To meet the demands of the island population of about 20, he had 100,000 of each value printed.
On 1 October 1969, when the stamps had been in use for 13 days, Guernsey Post took the bold move of reinstating the Herm Post Office and forced the closure of Major Wood’s postal service. The stamps were no longer in use and became philatelic nostalgia.
However, when the British Post Office had a strike in 1971, just at the time we went over to decimal money, Major Wood’s stamps were sold off and overprinted for use in the Southampton area, bought up for use as a local postal service. As is usual with overprints, the price went up too, now selling at 17s 6d for the set. Remarkably, the overprinted stamps are more difficult to obtain than the originals, so Major Wood had many years of benefit from the visits of philatelists to the island.
BLUE PLAQUES IN PUNTA ARENAS
Brian Clayton
A major part of my holiday to South America in November 2011 consisted of some fairly demanding treks in the National Parks of Chile and Argentina in the South of Patagonia. To reach those areas meant flying from Santiago de Chile to the city of Punta Arenas on the Magellan Strait (the link between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans avoiding Cape Horn). Punta Arenas has a growing population of about 120,000 and was, and still is, strongly associated with Antarctic Expeditions.
Both Scott, after his first visit to Antarctica, and Shackleton, during his third visit, spent time in Punta Arenas and are commemorated as shown in the accompanying digital images
On 8 July 1904 Scott deposited almost 400 letters in the old Post Office to announce the safe return of the Discovery from Antarctica after leaving England on 6 August 1901. Shackleton used rooms in the British Club, on the upper floor of the Punta Arenas Bank, in 1916 to organize the rescue of his men of the Endurance, stranded on Elephant Island, by Luis Alberto Pardo, the Chilean Captain of the Navy vessel Yelcho.
There are also blue plaques for Roald Amundsen (Norway), the first to reach the South Pole on foot (Dec 1911) and for Adrien de Gerlache (Belgium), the first to overwinter (1898/99) within the Antarctic Circle.
A LETTER TO GOD
A 4 year old’s dog, Abbey, recently died and she asked her mother if she could write a letter to God, so that when Abbey got to Heaven, God would recognise her. She, Meredith, dictated these words:
‘Dear God, will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in Heaven. I miss her very much. I’m happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick. I hope you will play with her. She likes to swim and play with balls. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her. Love, Meredith.'
The letter, together with a photograph, was addressed to God, Heaven. Meredith pasted several stamps on the envelope because ‘it would take lots of stamps to get it all the way to heaven’. A few days later, there was a package wrapped in gold paper in the porch. When Meredith opened it, she found a book called ‘When a Pet Dies’. and her letter to God in its opened envelope. There was an accompanying note:
Dear Meredith, Abbey arrived safely in Heaven. Having the picture was a big help and I recognised her right away. Abbey isn’t sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don’t need our bodies in Heaven, I don’t have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I’m sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by. Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her specially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I’m easy to find; I am wherever there is love. Love, God.
(I received this by email so cannot vouch for its veracity, but my kids wrote letters to Santa and got Christmas cards back in envelopes with a special ‘Reindeerland’ franking, so I can well believe there are some soft hearts in these ‘Dead Letter Offices’- Sandra Poole.)
OBITUARY: DERRICK ARTHUR AVERY 16 APRIL 1916 - 31 JANUARY 2012
A sizeable group of Notts Philatelic Society members attended Derrick’s funeral in February. I was given permission to publish the following from the funeral sheet:
Dad lived and worked all his life in Beeston. He started work as an electrician and moved into Ericsson’s tool room in 1931. He worked in various departments learning his trade, but spent from 1947 to his retirement in 1980 in the drawing office.
He had an abiding passion for all things philatelic and won many trophies and cups for his displays with the Nottingham Philatelic Society. He was their President 4 times. He also had an encyclopaedic
knowledge of Canadian philately and was a member of the Canadian Philatelic Society, being its President in 1986. He was meticulous in everything he did and his ability to document things was second to none. He left many albums of history for us to read and especially his favourite subject, Canada, which became even more intense when Susan emigrated there. He loved to peruse post card and stamp fairs for anything which would be helpful in his themes.
He was a very accomplished violinist and had his own dance band for many years. His love of classical music never left him and it rubbed off on his children.
He loved going on his holidays and enjoyed his coach trips over the last few years, having been on 5 last year; he had booked for 4 this year already He will be sadly missed but fondly remembered by all.
Tributes: (Wishing to compile a sort of literary montage as a tribute to Derrick, I asked members to send in a couple of sentences encapsulating what Derrick had meant to them. . Ed.)
He is a serious loss for the Society. He was a lovely man and I can’t think of anyone else who I could turn to for philatelic information with anything like the same certainty of getting an authoritative answer- to questions about almost anything. (David Shipstone)
Ian Jakes sent me a copy of ‘Stamp Collectors Fortnightly’, dated April !951. in which Derrick had written an introduction to a contributor’s article on Canadian Postal Stationery- one of his many collecting interests.
This photo from the Evening Post shows Derrick (President -far right), myself (Secretary -centre), and others at a reception held by Stanley Gibbons in Nottingham during the 1979/80 season. I don’t believe Stanley Gibbons undertake these ‘roadshows’ any longer; perhaps we should try to persuade the Company to resume them? On the far left is Mr D.A.J. Humphreys, postal historian and member of our Society until fairly recently. A rare map of Notts, dated 1611,is being shown. (Steve Speak)
We are both dreadfully sorry about this sad news. Derrick has always been most courteous and helpful to us in all our philatelic innocence and helped us sort out some of our philatelic issues. (Bryan and Minou Button) I will be more than sorry not to be sitting next to him at our meetings. (Minou)
Anyone that can greet Mr & Mrs Kirkham’s only eldest as ‘How are you young man?’ can’t be all bad. Derrick was one of the first to really talk to me (at the Victoria Hotel) at a time when even the senior members were expected to keep quiet. He asked me what I collected. I replied ‘English’. ‘Oh yes, GB is a good place to start’. He was obviously aware that I knew nothing of matters philatelic and proceeded to enlighten me. For this and the fact that he didn’t extract the Michael I shall always be grateful. Over the years, he remained a stalwart of the Society and a source of knowledge that he shared willingly… (George Kirkham)
When we first joined Notts in 1973/4, the very old guard was in charge on the top table. They seldom spoke to you and had little interest in anything other than the engraved GB. Derrick was different; he was very kind and helped newcomers with giving their first displays to the Society and offered useful advice and tips on how to improve their first displays. When we joined, he was the auctioneer and we soon became his runners. It always became part of the evening for us to go with Derrick after the auction for a drink and a chat on how the auction had gone. When I (Barbara) was Vice-President, he came up with a list of very useful tips on what to do and when to do them. This made my presidency so much easier. I passed this down the line to upcoming Presidents. Barbara knew the Averys outside the stamp world; they were in a club that met for ‘days out’ with other local groups and would share buses with them. Barbara’s Mum also knew them and enjoyed the many outings around the country. (Mick & Barbara Inger)
After giving my display to the NPS on the Machin 17-pin variety, which Derrick liked, he arrived at the next meeting with a written-up sheet showing a very fine used mounted 17-pin 26p stamp (how on earth did he see it amongst hundreds he was sorting for postmarks?) which he said was for me to keep. It is the only used stamp of the variety I had/have seen, authenticated by experts who had not seen one either. The philatelic knowledge and generosity possessed by Derrick were legendary and I am honoured to be a beneficiary of both. (Brian Clayton)
Derrick and I both worked for many years at Ericssons, later to become Plessey, but our duties followed different routes and our working paths rarely crossed. It was not until I joined the NPS in 1974 that I really got to know Derrick,. He was one of the elder statesmen, who I found very approachable and always willing to help with any queries and give guidance. It was Derrick who got me started with an interest in Postal History (not just sticking stamps on album pages) which interest continues to this day, As a result of his training as a draughtsman, Derrick chose to write up his collections by hand rather than use a computer programme and he always produced immaculate displays. As well as his study of Canadian stamps, his knowledge of Beeston Postal History was legendary. When work ended, Derrick became a member of the retired employees association and I know how much he enjoyed the various coach holidays that were arranged, because I used to go on most of them myself. He was always good company and he never missed an opportunity to promote our hobby. I will miss Derrick as I am sure will many others. (Gordon Low)
Derrick Avery over the years gave me a lot of advice. He sold me items well below the true value. All these items were of Canada. I personally will miss him for his personality and valuable experience over the years. He has been a very good and valued member of the Society. (Doug Stubbings)
It was his boyish smile when approached with a query that did it for me. (Sandra Poole)
Derrick- a really big hearted, kind and helpful gentleman. The sort of man that if you saw him out in the street you wouldn’t want to miss .The sort of man that now he is gone we shall all miss. (Wendy & Bill Orr.)
One of the first members to speak to me when I joined the Society. Always ready with advice on philately and Society matters. I always remember his cry (when auctioneer) ‘Dealers are paying more than this!’ (Chris Tennant)
MISCELLANY
AGM: 20 April 2012. The retiring President, Douglas Harvey (right) greeting Adrian Ritoridis, President (2012-3).
Removing Self-Adhesive Gum- Sandra Poole: I was recently given a 250ml bottle of Lindner’s Erni self-adhesive stamp remover. This doesn’t come cheap, it was around £10-£12, I believe. It removes, I quote, ‘self-adhesive stamps from envelopes, postcards and parcels etc.’ I was looking forward to trying it and had visions of stamp (intact) separated easily and completely from attached paper, which would then float away. I decided to follow instructions carefully. ‘Avoid contact with eyes, skin….’ OK. Found tweezers and, eventually, latex gloves. ‘The use of this product is at your own risk; we cannot accept liability over the use of this solution’. Can it be that dangerous- I am only soaking off stamps, aren’t I? Now we get down to the nitty-gritty. We are told to find suitable container, pour in enough liquid to submerge stamp and ‘after 15 minutes the self-adhesive gum should dissolve.’ It didn’t. Have you ever tried to remove paper from stamp with tweezers and gloves. NOT recommended. One stamp down, eleven to go. And, I must admit, I did digress from the rules here by using far too large a container, which needed much too much liquid, and putting in possibly too many stamps. ’For more persistent cases, we recommend submerging the stamps for up to 24 hours.’ 24 hours? You must be joking. Still, I did as I was told, checking on them constantly, each time damaging the stamps a bit more. But, at last, the allotted time was up and I dashed in with keen anticipation. Oh, dear- I could have used boiling water and saved myself 23¾ hours with the same result. I still had to peel off the paper and in so doing, didn’t do the stamps any favours. I decided to repeat the experiment with just one stamp-USA instead of GB and New Zealand- completely submerged, in complete isolation and in a very small container. I left it for 24 hours. The paper was still on the stamp. I rinsed stamp in water and gently eased the paper away with fingers minus gloves. I got the paper off and was left with a very thin stamp, but the surface was ok and unwrinkled. So was the experiment a success? The jury is still out on that one. I would be interested to know, though, if others have had better results or whether my expectations were too high. Perhaps I should try eucalyptus oil as recommended in the Waikato P.S. newsletter, have another go with the Lindner product, or just stick to very hot water.
Steve Speak received an email from John Waller of Waikato PS: ‘I have used eucalyptus oil and can vouch it does work, but the smell takes some getting out of the stamps. Plenty of nastier chemicals have been touted, but I keep well away from those. NZ Post stamps and the more modern ones from the alternate mail operators come off in very hot water, but the older material is the problem.’
Wendy Orr read recently that Royal Mail is producing special Gold Medal stamps for our Olympic successes. Each stamp will feature a photo of the GB athlete either in action or on the podium. This will be the first time that a country hosting this event has issued next day action-photo stamps. Wendy comments: ‘I wonder, have they changed the ruling that no living people other than the Queen and her family should be pictured on a stamp?' (Although the United States Post Office has set this 'rule', Royal Mail has not. See SG 2092 issued in 1999. Then, in 2010, a photograph of three young evacuees waiting at Kings Cross station was used on a GB stamp. Seventy years on, Royal Mail traced the three siblings and their story is told on the Royal Mail web site. (D.H.))
Another article that caught my eye was about ‘Government plans for a massive surveillance of Internet chat lines and emails etc’ that might be given the go ahead. If this is allowed to happen then, in my personal opinion, it might be better if we all went back to writing letters. At least, if the Government decides to ‘censor mail’, we may get some more interesting covers for our collections don’t you think?
This and That- Sandra Poole:
Around 20 billion Penny Red stamps were printed during its lifetime and four hundred different printing plates were used. However, only four mint and five used stamps are known from Plate 77 and one of these has just been sold for £550,000 by Stanley Gibbons and it appears to have gone to an investor rather than a collector. Well, that’s one gap I’ll never now be able to fill!
There’s been a lot of fuss about the new postal charges, but with people eschewing commemorative issues- or not even being aware of them- and instead buying booklet stamps at the supermarket checkout, I wondered how many people, in fact, were actually aware of the price of the 2nd and 1st class Machins. I therefore decided to do my own straw poll amongst friends, acquaintances, family and members from a group I belong to. I don’t pretend it was scientific, but I do feel it was representative of a lot of people. Of those I asked, only one knew the correct price. This would indicate that if it were not for the press, a lot of people would not even notice that the price of a stamp had gone up. But with all the fuss in the papers, just about everyone in my sample was aware that prices were increasing at the end of April and most knew what the new rates were. A lot had gone out to stock up on extra booklets and a few had already decided to cut down on the number of Christmas cards they were sending this year. It will probably be a while therefore, before the P.O. actually benefits from the latest hike. The Post Office, as you all know, publish a leaflet with all the current rates and a lot of people know that large letters cost more than standard ones, but I expect a lot of you, like me, receive non-standard letters with two first class stamps on (or even three to make sure) rather than the exact rate made up with other values. This must be one area where the Post Office does make a profit1
The first letter pillar-boxes were erected in Nottingham on 24 September 1857. Until then, people had to take their mail to the GPO or to one of the three receiving offices. These were in Derby Rd., Mansfield Rd and Sneinton Rd. (Evening Post)
The Titanic had 3,418 sacks of mail on board.
Pause for Thought: Before the introduction of the 1d post in 1840, it cost 10d to send a letter from Nottingham to London, 8d to Birmingham or Manchester, 6d to Leicester, 5d to Derby and 4d to Mansfield. Taking all those years of inflation into account, we are not getting such a bad deal from Royal Mail after all.
DISCLAIMER: While every care is taken during the production of this newsletter, neither the editor nor the Society officials can accept any liability for views, opinions or unintentional publication errors which may occur.
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