Spring 2023 Meeting Report

AN ACCOUNT OF THE MEETING OF THE SOMERSET & DORSET POSTAL HISTORY GROUP HELD AT HORNSBURY MILL, CHARD, SOMERSET ON SUNDAY 12th MARCH 2023.

We assembled at Hornsbury Mill for our first meeting of 2023, being met by the usual homemade cookies and coffee provided by the wonderful owner, Jane who just happened to be away in Oxford. We were only ten in number on this occasion due to the usual ill health and transport problems.

Apologies were received and accepted from: Nigel Borlase-Hendry; David & Mary Eastman & Keith Wright.

John Cowlin opened the proceedings [as he did in the previous March and in October] with a fantastic display of the Boxer War and Rebellion and other conflicts from the late 1890’s to the pre-WWI conflicts including the Moroccan Emergency. The cards were of excellent quality and showed the political bias which was evident against the British in the Boxer Revolt with many cards, mainly from France and Germany, mocking the British Political Elite, Queen Victoria and Edward VII. Another section was about the political situation during the Russo-Japanese War, where the Russians were defeated by the “lowly” Japanese navy and army. [Watch this space for an up-coming further defeat of the Russians by the “lowly” Ukrainians.]

John’s display was nothing less than we have come to expect from him; quality exhibits of pristine condition and substantial rarity with evidence of very good and deep research into his subjects, which John clearly enjoys.

A further excellent display and very well written up-well done John.

Mike Tombs then showed us items from his collection of the postal history of Cognac; starting with an 1802 entire to Liverpool from the then relatively unknown area which was soon to  become synonymous with the favourite tipple of many-a-Frenchman and foreigner alike. Mike gave a brief history of the area and explained that the tipple was only made from three types of grape grown in the area and that the barrels were made from just three local forests. At its height, there were no less than 1,000 local producers. The wine is left in the barrels for a minimum of 10 years before it is inspected by the manly English producers, the majority of whom came from Dorset!! Mike proceeded to show items of postal history from Cognac going into the principle ports of Bristol, Liverpool and Newcastle, where Cognac was exported and coal and other items were imported on the return journeys. In all, a very well presented display from someone who is very knowledgeable in the ways of the French and likely an avid partaker of the tipple itself.

Before lunch Nick Bridgwater put up a couple of frames of Stuff from Somerset, showing some examples of the unboxed "No.5" receiving house handstamp in the Taunton Penny Post, thought to be Bicknoller, an 1810 missent letter with handstamps from Bradford Wiltshire, Frome, Bath and Taunton, some examples of the boxed and unboxed "No.7" handstamp in the Cross Penny Post written from Wedmore (which had the boxed "No.9" handstamp) by the vicar of Wedmore.  The "No.7" handstamps were thought to be from Mark, four miles west of Wedmore.  Nick moved on to showing some unfranked foreign postcards to Taunton from around 1990 with postage due marks (some charges not explainable), an invite to Tea at Milborne Port for the coronation of King Edward VII (which was delayed as he was ill), and a series of Somerset UDCs from Aller, Ashill, Oakhill, Blackford, Martock, Radstock, Shepton Beauchamp, Wedmore (to the USA), Winsford, and Yatton (with a 6d registration fee).

Lunch followed and the silent auction took place-raising £10 for club funds; the remainder going to the vendors.

After lunch, Allen Cotton, our treasurer displayed from his magnificent collection of British Postal Stationery including 1d & 2d Mulready letter sheets and envelopes, both mint and used-with one from Stow School. He also showed a number of caricatures of the Mulready envelopes, some genuine and one or two of the reproductions. These were followed by a specimen overprint of the 1d pink letter sheet and McQuarcodale essay stamp impressions for postcards and proof examples of the ½d violet cards etc. Experimental cancels were shown, namely the Sloper “clip” and “arrow” cancels of Manchester [clip] and Liverpool & London [arrow] and the oft disregarded “nail-hole” through the stamp impression used in London. Die proofs and specimen cards from the 1899 1d issue and the 2d & 3d postcards were shown as well as specimen overprints etc. When the postal rates were reduced in the early 1920’s,envelopes and postcards were “devalued” by the impression of the triangular framed device with the post office number in the centre of the triangle. These are quite uncommon and Allen showed quite a few, both mint and used. He also showed the array of postal stationery produced to compliment the first British commemorative stamp issue for the British Empire Exhibition of both 1924 & 1925. Advertising stationery followed with both envelopes and postcards represented, advertising all sorts of things from medicines to blacking for your grate etc. Cancelled-to-order stationery was the fitting end to Allen’s display with a multitude of different frankings to meet the specific uses of the customer.

It was now the turn of the members to display their recent acquisitions to the assembled:

Bill Pipe, our Chairman/Secretary opened this session and showed items from his “pension fund” including an envelope with letter from Tristan Da Cunha to Widnes, carried by the Antarctic Survey vessel, the Royal Yacht Squadron’s “Quest” on its return from the Antarctic Expedition of Rowett & Shackleton with the type II Tristan cancel at top right and the s/ring S.R ANTARCTIC/EXPEDITION 1921 below, dated 25.5.1922. He also showed a 1918 Bank of England 1918 National War Bonds certificate cancelled by the pictorial s/ring FEED THE GUNS dated 14.10.1918; examples of the German GEO VI definitive forgeries with the liquidation of Empire overprints for the Bahamas, Jamaica, Hong Kong, St Lucia, Singapore, Trinidad & Bermuda followed along with similar forgeries by the Germans with parts of the definitive design being replaced by Stars of David and Hammer & Sickles, not to mention the GEO V ½d Silver Jubilee forgery with the legend “This War is a Jewsh [sic] War” and the 1937 Coronation value showing GEO VI & Stalin. Other items followed, including Boer War satirical envelope, “Q for 0” variety on SG 419 on a postcard; signatures [genuine!!] of Emily Pankhurst and Ivor Novello and other odds & sods.

Roger Martin gave us his usual display of Bristol miscellany including Churchill UDC’s in blue, some modern Bristol items from his work’s wastepaper bin and an envelope with letter enclosed from Bath addressed to the daughter of well known stamp dealer Oswald Marsh which was posted on 6.2.1916 and delivered to the address on 23.2.2021.

Allen Cotton finished the day by showing examples of the Wells Penny Post, the Wells Fifth Clause Post from Stoneaston to Bruton of 1824.

Thanks were offered to the three members who provided the main displays, the individual members who displayed, Elizabeth Higgins for organising the turn-out and the menu, Graham Mark for bringing the display boards, Allan Cotton for his work on the accounts and Nick Bridgwater for producing yet another informative and well produced journal.

Tea and coffee were consumed together with more homemade cookies and we all went home having had an excellent days entertainment.

Our next meeting at Hornsbury Mill is the 15th October 2023.

Our displays in October will be:

WWI Political & Satirical postcards by John Cowlin, WWI Censorship by Graham Mark and the Postal History of Shepton Mallet by Allen Cotton with Bill Pipe standing by with an emergency back-up display.

Bill Pipe,

Secretary of the Somerset & Dorset Postal History Group.

27th October 2023