Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. Sale

2005 Rarities of the World, Part Two continued...

**Local Posts**
Lot	Sym.	Lot Description	Est/Cat	Realized
515		B. Post/5. Large dark blue stencil-applied rate handstamp on cover to William Stewart, a Baltimore attorney, with hand-colored comic Valentine entitled "A Lawyer", the poetic assault reads (in part) "As tough as your parchment, as black as your heart, Made up of lies that would fill an ox cart...To wed with all these, I'm not such a dunce, I'd prefer the old Devil, your daddy, at once", almost certainly original to cover, Very Fine, the better of only two recorded examples of this enigmatic local-post handstamp, this post is discussed in Kelly's CCP series (Vol. 50, Bo. 4, p. 220), but virtually nothing is known about its operation (Image)	E. 1,000-1,500	2,500.00
516		E. N. Barry Despatch Post, New York N.Y. Watery grayish black "E. N. Barry's Despatch Post" in large circle struck on undated blue folded cover addressed in blue to "R. S. Rowley, 252 Broadway", small tear at top, lightly toned along file fold ONE OF THREE RECORDED COVERS WITH THE BARRY'S DESPATCH POST MARKING -- THIS IS THE ONLY EXAMPLE KNOWN IN BLACK. Edward N. Barry is noted by Elliott Perry (One Hundred Years Ago, p. 63) as a "postman" at 123 Bowery in 1852 and a letter carrier at 12 Thompson Street in 1854. Private correspondence from Perry regarding this cover indicates that there was an Robert S. Rowley practising law at 252 Broadway continuously from 1850 (or earlier) through 1854 (or later). Contemporary source information and actual covers related to Barry are rare. Three covers are reported: the black strike on the cover offered here (ex Hollowbush and Hall), five red strikes on a large Valentine (ex Golden, realized $1,900 hammer) and another red strike on a Valentine (Sloane records). Ex Hollowbush and Hall (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	3,000.00
517		Beesley's Express Post, Utica N.Y. Three-line handstamp "BEESLEY'S/EXPRESS/PAID." perfectly struck twice in red on 8-1/2 by 11 in. Valentine cover to local Utica street address, beautiful bronze design on front and back of envelope, with a splendid Valentine enclosure (almost certainly original to the cover), lace panel with hand-colored floral and bird design, paste-on decorations and poem, Extremely Fine, an outstanding Valentine usage and reported by Hahn to be the only known example of this small three-line Beesley's Express marking (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	2,600.00
518		Beesley's Express Post, Utica N.Y. Three-line handstamp "G. N. BEESLY'S/EXPRESS POST,/UTICA,N.Y." on cover to a Miss Gridly at the City Hotel in Utica, probably a Valentine mailing, faint toning spots, Very Fine, Hahn records two examples of this marking (the other was in our Golden sale) (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	950.00
519		Philadelphia Despatch Post, Philadelphia Pa., 3c Red on Bluish (15L1). Octagonal margins with large part of circle intact, ms. "R & Co." control mark, clear strike of red outline "3" cancel, affixed with thick mucilage to folded letter datelined "Philadelphia Aug. 29th 1843" to Lloyd's Va., red "Philadelphia Pa. Aug. 30" circular datestamp just barely ties margin of stamp, blue ms. "18-3/4" rate with a notation "Chd" (Charged) VERY FINE. FROM A RECENT DISCOVERY, THIS IS ONE OF FIFTEEN RECORDED EXAMPLES OF THE PHILADELPHIA DESPATCH POST RED STAMP. A WONDERFUL "PRIMITIVE" AMONG PHILATELIC RARITIES. A census of Philadelphia Despatch 15L1 and 15L2 stamps may be found at our website: www.siegelauctions.com/2000/830/y83082.htm. This cover was recently discovered in an archive and was not previously included in the census. It is offered to the market for the first time. (Image)	8,500.00	3,750.00
520		Blood's City Despatch, Philadelphia Pa., (1c) Bronze on Black Glazed (15L17). Margins slightly in, exceptionally bright color, appears to be without the usual acid cancel, used with 5c Brown (1), large even margins, both tied by lightly struck blue "Philada. Pa. 5 Jan. 10" integral-rate circular datestamp on blue 1850 folded letter to Washington D.C., file fold clear of stamp, Very Fine, outstanding quality for this scarce 1847/Local combination, this Blood's stamp is almost always found with a disfiguring acid cancel, it is rarely tied in this manner, ex Rust and Hill (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	3,500.00
521		"POST". One word contained in broken circle applied by stencil in red, matching "Paid" straightline on folded Valentine's Day poem dated Feb. 14, 1848, to Miss Cadwalader, 7 Vine Street in Philadelphia, yellow Blood's advertising label at upper right, Extremely Fine, Hahn records only two examples of this enigmatic "Post" marking, the advertising label ties it to Blood's post, but the style of the marking is atypical of Blood's in this period and the stencil application is more suggestive of Spence & Brown in Baltimore -- in any case, an important Local Post rarity and certainly open to further research -- ex Hollowbush (Image)	E. 1,000-1,500	3,500.00
522		Brooklyn City Post, Brooklyn N.Y. Remarkably bold "Brooklyn City Post" oval handstamp on decorative Valentine cover to Mr. Joseph Wellman, 53 Atlantic St. in South Brooklyn, bronze design on front and back of bluish gray envelope EXTREMELY FINE. ONLY ONE OTHER EXAMPLE OF THIS VALENTINE LOCAL POST IS RECORDED. Only this cover and one other with the oval marking (with "Paid"), ex Golden, provide evidence of the Brooklyn City Post. It was probably a small Valentine post that operated only one season. No relationship has been established between this Brooklyn City Post and the other major Brooklyn posts run by Boyd, Jones, Walton, Kidder, Snedeker and Rogers. Ex Malcolm and Jarrett (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	5,000.00
523		Bush's Brooklyn City N.Y. 2 Cent Express. Red oval handstamp clearly struck in conjunction with brownish-red "P.O. City Despatch Post Jan. 5 - O'Clock" circular datestamp on Jan. 2, 1850 folded letter from Ann Sharpe in Brooklyn to Charles P. Williams on Front Street in Manhattan, sharp file crease VERY FINE STRIKE OF THIS RARE BROOKLYN LOCAL POST MARKING. PROBABLY NO MORE THAN A HALF-DOZEN COVERS EXIST WITH THE HANDSTAMPED OVAL OF BUSH'S BROOKLYN CITY EXPRESS. THIS IS THE ONLY RECORDED EXAMPLE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE POST OFFICE CITY DESPATCH LOCAL POST IN MANHATTAN. Based on covers with the oval Bush's Brooklyn City Express handstamp, this post is known to have existed from early 1848 through early 1850. At least four covers are recorded in this period: 1) Feb. 14, 1848, Valentine cover to Mary Thompson with dated enclosure, ex Golden, 2) Mar. 30, 1848 folded letter to Charles P. Williams (same addressee), ex Mason and Hall, 3) Jan. 5, 1850, to Charles P. Williams, 192 Front St., with P.O. City Despatch datestamp, ex Hollowbush, the cover offered here, and 4) Valentine cover to Mary A. Richards with enclosure, ex Golden. Only a few other covers with Bush's handstamp are known. To our knowledge, a city directory listing for the post has not been located, although a "John Bush, carpenter Fleet op Bolivar" and "Samuel L. Bush, merchant NY h 56 Harrison" are listed in the 1847-48 and 1848-49 directories (according to Scott's Stamp Monthly, May 1952). Perry noted that John O. Bush is listed as a "carrier" of "newspapers" almost continuously from 1851 to 1858 in New York City (Pat Paragraphs, reprint, p. 394). Ex Hollowbush (Image)	E. 1,500-2,000	3,250.00
524		City Despatch Post. Oval handstamp clearly struck on cover to Dr. G. A. Mainevaring, 270 8th Ave., New York City, pencil "2" rate, enclosure is a part-printed marshal's notice dated Apr. 17, 1858, about half of backflap removed and faint overall toning, otherwise Very Fine, one of four recorded covers with this oval marking, all addressed in the same hand, this 1858 year-dated usage places this post well past the years of the Mead-Coles operation and probably beyond Barry's involvement, see Perry's 100 Years Ago and Jarrett article in Chronicle 122 (May 1984) (Image)	E. 1,000-1,500	1,500.00
525		Cumming's City Post, New York N.Y. Ornate oval Eagle handstamp with "CUMMING'S CITY POST" straightline on folded letter datelined "Newport Aug. 24, 1846" from Newport, Herkimer County N.Y., to New York City street address, clear strike with nearly full detail, slightly fragile along folds with tiny tears at edges, still Very Fine, extremely rare, this is believed to be the best strike of the few known, ex Gregory, Needham, Sloane and Hollowbush (Image)	E. 1,000-1,500	750.00

Local Posts

Lot

Sym.

Lot Description

Est/Cat

Realized

515

B. Post/5. Large dark blue stencil-applied rate handstamp on cover to William Stewart, a Baltimore attorney, with hand-colored comic Valentine entitled "A Lawyer", the poetic assault reads (in part) "As tough as your parchment, as black as your heart, Made up of lies that would fill an ox cart...To wed with all these, I'm not such a dunce, I'd prefer the old Devil, your daddy, at once", almost certainly original to cover, Very Fine, the better of only two recorded examples of this enigmatic local-post handstamp, this post is discussed in Kelly's CCP series (Vol. 50, Bo. 4, p. 220), but virtually nothing is known about its operation (Image)

E. 1,000-1,500

2,500.00

516

E. N. Barry Despatch Post, New York N.Y. Watery grayish black "E. N. Barry's Despatch Post" in large circle struck on undated blue folded cover addressed in blue to "R. S. Rowley, 252 Broadway", small tear at top, lightly toned along file fold

ONE OF THREE RECORDED COVERS WITH THE BARRY'S DESPATCH POST MARKING -- THIS IS THE ONLY EXAMPLE KNOWN IN BLACK.

Edward N. Barry is noted by Elliott Perry (One Hundred Years Ago, p. 63) as a "postman" at 123 Bowery in 1852 and a letter carrier at 12 Thompson Street in 1854. Private correspondence from Perry regarding this cover indicates that there was an Robert S. Rowley practising law at 252 Broadway continuously from 1850 (or earlier) through 1854 (or later). Contemporary source information and actual covers related to Barry are rare. Three covers are reported: the black strike on the cover offered here (ex Hollowbush and Hall), five red strikes on a large Valentine (ex Golden, realized $1,900 hammer) and another red strike on a Valentine (Sloane records).

Ex Hollowbush and Hall (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

3,000.00

517

Beesley's Express Post, Utica N.Y. Three-line handstamp "BEESLEY'S/EXPRESS/PAID." perfectly struck twice in red on 8-1/2 by 11 in. Valentine cover to local Utica street address, beautiful bronze design on front and back of envelope, with a splendid Valentine enclosure (almost certainly original to the cover), lace panel with hand-colored floral and bird design, paste-on decorations and poem, Extremely Fine, an outstanding Valentine usage and reported by Hahn to be the only known example of this small three-line Beesley's Express marking (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

2,600.00

518

Beesley's Express Post, Utica N.Y. Three-line handstamp "G. N. BEESLY'S/EXPRESS POST,/UTICA,N.Y." on cover to a Miss Gridly at the City Hotel in Utica, probably a Valentine mailing, faint toning spots, Very Fine, Hahn records two examples of this marking (the other was in our Golden sale) (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

950.00

519

Philadelphia Despatch Post, Philadelphia Pa., 3c Red on Bluish (15L1). Octagonal margins with large part of circle intact, ms. "R & Co." control mark, clear strike of red outline "3" cancel, affixed with thick mucilage to folded letter datelined "Philadelphia Aug. 29th 1843" to Lloyd's Va., red "Philadelphia Pa. Aug. 30" circular datestamp just barely ties margin of stamp, blue ms. "18-3/4" rate with a notation "Chd" (Charged)

VERY FINE. FROM A RECENT DISCOVERY, THIS IS ONE OF FIFTEEN RECORDED EXAMPLES OF THE PHILADELPHIA DESPATCH POST RED STAMP. A WONDERFUL "PRIMITIVE" AMONG PHILATELIC RARITIES.

A census of Philadelphia Despatch 15L1 and 15L2 stamps may be found at our website: www.siegelauctions.com/2000/830/y83082.htm. This cover was recently discovered in an archive and was not previously included in the census. It is offered to the market for the first time. (Image)

8,500.00

3,750.00

520

Blood's City Despatch, Philadelphia Pa., (1c) Bronze on Black Glazed (15L17). Margins slightly in, exceptionally bright color, appears to be without the usual acid cancel, used with 5c Brown (1), large even margins, both tied by lightly struck blue "Philada. Pa. 5 Jan. 10" integral-rate circular datestamp on blue 1850 folded letter to Washington D.C., file fold clear of stamp, Very Fine, outstanding quality for this scarce 1847/Local combination, this Blood's stamp is almost always found with a disfiguring acid cancel, it is rarely tied in this manner, ex Rust and Hill (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

3,500.00

521

"POST". One word contained in broken circle applied by stencil in red, matching "Paid" straightline on folded Valentine's Day poem dated Feb. 14, 1848, to Miss Cadwalader, 7 Vine Street in Philadelphia, yellow Blood's advertising label at upper right, Extremely Fine, Hahn records only two examples of this enigmatic "Post" marking, the advertising label ties it to Blood's post, but the style of the marking is atypical of Blood's in this period and the stencil application is more suggestive of Spence & Brown in Baltimore -- in any case, an important Local Post rarity and certainly open to further research -- ex Hollowbush (Image)

E. 1,000-1,500

3,500.00

522

Brooklyn City Post, Brooklyn N.Y. Remarkably bold "Brooklyn City Post" oval handstamp on decorative Valentine cover to Mr. Joseph Wellman, 53 Atlantic St. in South Brooklyn, bronze design on front and back of bluish gray envelope

EXTREMELY FINE. ONLY ONE OTHER EXAMPLE OF THIS VALENTINE LOCAL POST IS RECORDED.

Only this cover and one other with the oval marking (with "Paid"), ex Golden, provide evidence of the Brooklyn City Post. It was probably a small Valentine post that operated only one season. No relationship has been established between this Brooklyn City Post and the other major Brooklyn posts run by Boyd, Jones, Walton, Kidder, Snedeker and Rogers.

Ex Malcolm and Jarrett (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

5,000.00

523

Bush's Brooklyn City N.Y. 2 Cent Express. Red oval handstamp clearly struck in conjunction with brownish-red "P.O. City Despatch Post Jan. 5 - O'Clock" circular datestamp on Jan. 2, 1850 folded letter from Ann Sharpe in Brooklyn to Charles P. Williams on Front Street in Manhattan, sharp file crease

VERY FINE STRIKE OF THIS RARE BROOKLYN LOCAL POST MARKING. PROBABLY NO MORE THAN A HALF-DOZEN COVERS EXIST WITH THE HANDSTAMPED OVAL OF BUSH'S BROOKLYN CITY EXPRESS. THIS IS THE ONLY RECORDED EXAMPLE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE POST OFFICE CITY DESPATCH LOCAL POST IN MANHATTAN.

Based on covers with the oval Bush's Brooklyn City Express handstamp, this post is known to have existed from early 1848 through early 1850. At least four covers are recorded in this period: 1) Feb. 14, 1848, Valentine cover to Mary Thompson with dated enclosure, ex Golden, 2) Mar. 30, 1848 folded letter to Charles P. Williams (same addressee), ex Mason and Hall, 3) Jan. 5, 1850, to Charles P. Williams, 192 Front St., with P.O. City Despatch datestamp, ex Hollowbush, the cover offered here, and 4) Valentine cover to Mary A. Richards with enclosure, ex Golden. Only a few other covers with Bush's handstamp are known.

To our knowledge, a city directory listing for the post has not been located, although a "John Bush, carpenter Fleet op Bolivar" and "Samuel L. Bush, merchant NY h 56 Harrison" are listed in the 1847-48 and 1848-49 directories (according to Scott's Stamp Monthly, May 1952). Perry noted that John O. Bush is listed as a "carrier" of "newspapers" almost continuously from 1851 to 1858 in New York City (Pat Paragraphs, reprint, p. 394).

Ex Hollowbush (Image)

E. 1,500-2,000

3,250.00

524

City Despatch Post. Oval handstamp clearly struck on cover to Dr. G. A. Mainevaring, 270 8th Ave., New York City, pencil "2" rate, enclosure is a part-printed marshal's notice dated Apr. 17, 1858, about half of backflap removed and faint overall toning, otherwise Very Fine, one of four recorded covers with this oval marking, all addressed in the same hand, this 1858 year-dated usage places this post well past the years of the Mead-Coles operation and probably beyond Barry's involvement, see Perry's 100 Years Ago and Jarrett article in Chronicle 122 (May 1984) (Image)

E. 1,000-1,500

1,500.00

525

Cumming's City Post, New York N.Y. Ornate oval Eagle handstamp with "CUMMING'S CITY POST" straightline on folded letter datelined "Newport Aug. 24, 1846" from Newport, Herkimer County N.Y., to New York City street address, clear strike with nearly full detail, slightly fragile along folds with tiny tears at edges, still Very Fine, extremely rare, this is believed to be the best strike of the few known, ex Gregory, Needham, Sloane and Hollowbush (Image)

E. 1,000-1,500

750.00