Forward

Some people are confused about the difference between philately and stamp collecting. Stamp collecting is the activity of simply accumulating stamps of a particular country, group of countries or of the world at large. Some stamp collectors collect items related to a particular theme such as “art on stamps”, “balloons” or “birds on stamps”, there is growing interest and now recognition of this thematic dimension of stamp collecting. Philately on the other hand is the study of is the collection and study of aspects of the conveyance of items by means of what is now referred to as the postal system. Philately embraces the study of postage stamps; postmarks and other markings on items that have been through the post, for example, registration labels, censor marks; indications of underpayment of postage rates, etc.; and the history of the postal services including before the first postage stamp was issues on 1st May 1840.

I recall as a schoolboy ‘collecting’ stamps, whatever I could lay my hands on. Through labouring over the stamps I begged and bought, sticking them carefully into an album bought for a resent, I learned the countries of the world and their locations; old and present names for them; the flags of some of the countries; and a little about their history and geography – much of this information I can still recall to this day. It took me many years to realise the value of stamp collecting as a general education tool. Since then stamp collecting and philately have come on a long way in so many ways.

As I grew older my interest in stamps faded but, being a basic squirrel by nature, I confined my collection to my parents attic where it remained for a good quarter century before they finally demanded I took it away as part of a general house tidy. A casual flick through bought back my interest and I resumed the hobby.

Even later in life I had the fortune to move to York and joined the York Philatelic Society, basically to see what happened in a philatelic society. I have been a member ever since and am now the Honorary Secretary.

This book has been written by one of our longest standing members whose dedication to the Society is unquestionable. He have risen to the daunting challenge of reading through all the past Annual General Meeting minutes and the Committee Meeting minutes to distil out of it an overall feel for the Society’s history 1948 to 2005.

Just to give the York Philatelic Society a place in the Regional and National philatelic scene, the Society is a member of the Association of British Philatelic Societies and of the regional Yorkshire Philatelic Association. Both Associations provide a means by which member societies can network with others and provides a useful source of information on individual Society information and on philatelists nationwide who are prepared to give talks to other societies. In addition to the City philatelic societies there are single country societies and study groups for the even more specialised philatelists. So there is both depth and breadth to this educational and fascinating hobby and many ways of exploring an ever increasing subject.

A. Ward