Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
I'm finding that I'm focusing on a bit of an odd mix at the moment: Papua & New Guinea, Ceylon and Jersey. I find that my focus changes quite often and is quite influenced by what is offered in the Auctions.
Looking forward to hearing what you are focusing on.
Tim.
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Last few weeks: New Zealand, Australia, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Poland
Next few weeks (probably): Hyderabad, Albania, Yugoslavia, Serbia, Norway
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Currently, Australia, NZ, France, South Africa, Ceylon and Ireland. Ongoing GB and Isles, filling some of the expensive gaps.
In the background various Commonwealth and Germany. Many of which I have not even sorted what I have in country envelopes and page protectors.
Not even looking at the mass of Canadian or USA in albums and bags, they just do not hold any interest for me.
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Thailand, Cape of Good Hope, Nyasaland. I will eventually get back to my Windsor GB album and maybe start on the Machins.
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In my main personal collection, I mainly focus on the Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Greenland, Faroe Islands and Aland. Because most of my few blank spots will never be filled because of finances, I am dabbling in other areas like French Colonies and Papua New Guinea and a little in Germany.
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In general, British Commonwealth.
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Just about everything from anywhere, postally used with an emphasis on nature - wildlife, plants, landscapes, fishing , hunting and so on.
I am happy when I find stamps like these at $1-$2/piece, but if nothing like that is out there, I go after some regular postage stamps.
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Filling gaps in my GB QV section of the Windsor album and all-Empire KGV as usual.
I don't know how you WW collectors do it!
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I have spent the last few days selecting stamps for Liechtenstein and Egypt for my International 1840-1963 albums and have mostly completed these except for the early issues for Egypt. In addition I have been filling in phosphor and odd watermark issues for Great Britain and made a huge leap on Australia issues for the International albums as well. I, also, added about a hundred miscellaneous items from a pick book for the International Part I album across the A-Bermuda countries. Still just shy of 40% of all stamps for the International albums for 1840-1963 as a group but now have 40%+ of the stamps for the 1840-1940 (I), 1940-1949 (II), and 1956-1959 (IV) albums.
I, also, acquired a large lot of 1990-1998 issues for Great Britain to fill in the more modern releases for my Great Britain album although these have not made it into my album as yet. Hopefully I will have enough clear Scott/Prinz mounts on hand to complete these additions over the next week or so. I am thinking about taking a stab at some of the Great Britain regional issues in a week or so as well. A local stamp dealer has a collection with those pages included and may be willing to sell the regionals separately as he sold me the 1990-1998 issues from that collection at a bit below face value. It was quite amazing how much face value was issued by Great Britain during that time period.
I have a small backlog of new acquisitions for my new attempt on the Smithsonian Stamp for Every Country album to add as well.
I suspect that my acquisitions will slow for a month or so as I start to do some more clean-up of my "stamp" room and prepare some older feeder albums for disposal after rechecking them for some stamps for the new Smithsonian album project.
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Belgium Monaco and Luxembourg mostly back of the book, mostly some pretty expensive stuff...but I seem to be able to get enough rare material week after week without breaking the bank. Is it my imagination, or are there some serious bargains (I mean 10%-15% of Cat) to be had out there...if you are patient enough? It is not coming for occasional sellers, but from some pretty serious dealers. Too much inventory that is not moving is my guess, and a lot of competition in the 20% to 40% of cat value it seems.
On some of my advance collections, getting one stamp a week is a pretty good accomplishment. I need to narrow my focus (same old song would say my wife), but when I want to have some cheap thrills, I look no further for the inexpensive stamps than the Mexico Exporta stamps. Since time is still not an issue, it can amuse me, and challenge me...while 4 years ago it drove me batty!
rrr....
aaah and French colonies...
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I've been collecting stamps since I was 14.
In the early years the Netherlands and Indonesia.
Then switched to Germany and everything that goes with it.
If you do not know what I mean look at all my posts in the section Europe / Germany
The collections of the Netherlands and Indonesia exchanged for all kinds of German stamps.
At the end of the nineties I started again with the Netherlands but in 2006 stopped with that. (also stopped with the new issues of Germany in 2006, but bought a little collection from 2006 - 2017 so.........)
Now I am looking forward to picking up Indonesia again. (Not sure yet)
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It's interesting that "focus" to us seems to involve at least a half a dozen different countries! 
I recently upgraded to the first two volumes of the hingeless Mystic Heirloom albums and I am in the process of moving stamps into them. They are nice for the price. It cuts off at 1966 and that is a good year to stop (I have plenty post-1966 but not worth a new album). At some point I will get their back of the book volume.
I've been transferring used commemoratives from the '40's and '50's and realized that many of the stamps, used, were from my original collection back in the '60's! And boy, are they in bad shape! Thins, tears, layers of hinges, a mess. My focus will be the fairly inexpensive project of upgrading everything from the Prexies to 1966 to MNH. I recently won at auction a set of unused Prexies so I figure that is a good place to start.
Of course, this may change. I have some GB that I need to put in my album, and I have a pile of Cayman Islands that I have done nothing with. I have the new English Michel German Empire catalog so I want to review my collection to make sure everything is identified correctly. And I have not looked at Norway in a while. And what about Canada?
Sigh...
Geoff
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i oversaw the dismemberment and subsequent lotting of a collection belonging to a member of my local club. This was a 2-volume and 4-volume sets of Scott international, the first ending at 1949 and the second at 1955. Those pages not taken by others to lot I did myself, and will look at Germany in a week or two with an aim to fill spots in my collection, then lot it for the club auction.
I also organized a large lot of Christmas, Easter, and other types of charity sheets, filing in glassine books. Jan-Simon was the beneficiary of some of the Danish sheets to help with his collection. I kept tabs on the sheets with the goal of creating a more useful inventory system. Right how it's on paper, waiting to be transferred onto excel, just like my collection of tied Christmas seals.
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Well lately its been filling spaces in the good old Scott Internationals to 1969 and what modern Canada comes along.
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I’m still focused on USA. My collection of singles, plate blocks and first day covers is pretty complete for 20th Century, what’s left are 19th Century rarer and more expensive stamps. For instance I need the Columbian $3-4-5 values.
I’m also picking up unusual usage since my albums allow for including anything I wish. For instance I just bought two 1904 Worlds Fair post cards to add to that stamp issue.
As I sort covers and postcards I’ve been putting aside those with Christmas seals. I guess I’m working on a set on cover, preferably tied by cancel. I’m also putting aside postal cards and may assemble those into an album.
Of course I’m still looking for interesting covers on my Ben Franklin Series of 1902. Lately I’ve been adding US naval cancels from 1908-10.
And I’m focusing daily on my New Jersey cancels on full cover. I have my favorite dealers on eBsy search for NJ so I get emails daily of their new listings.
I am collecting one country but have found many areas of interest to keep me busy and interested!
So I’m focused
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Moving my ww -> 1940 collection into Steiner pages. Austria done yesterday, Ireland next. Approaching 9 % coverage according to the BigBlue Excel sheet.
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At this moment my main focus is on Danish Christmas seals, although I am slowly widening the net to include other Nordic seals. I just added my first seals from the Faroes and Greenland.
I am very pleased with the pre-war Aalborg local Christmas seals I received last week. They are very beautiful.
Other than that, I recently started collections of Danzig and General Gouvernement (German occupation of Poland during WW2). It's nice to have something new to work on.
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Venezuela
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I have a fairly extensive list of countries and areas I collect and have a want list for each of them. I don't usually concentrate on any particular area, I try to look for any stamp from any area I am missing. With some of the areas it's much more difficult because of price, almost all of the US and Canada I am missing are expensive! I have to really think hard if I'm going to add stamps from these two countries. The only Canadian stamps that are really affordable would be some of the Newfoundland stamps and we're still looking at $30, at least, per item. Almost all of the US I can afford are BOB, with a few exceptions that I keep my eyes open for. Lately I seem to be concentrating on the small number of newer Poland and Russia stamps I am missing. Thanks to Steve I just finished Poland Generalgovernment stamps, he had the one stamp I was missing. I just finished Nyassa except for the Lisbon printing of of the 1921 series. Maybe it's time to try to complete Mozambique Company which is quite affordable.
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Hi All
I have decided to focus on South and Latin American stamps for awhile. I am doing my best to catalogue the stamps I have and to print out Steiner pages as well. I was excited when I saw the thread on the Mexico Export stamps as I spent a good day trying to decipher some of the ones I had and actually knew what the thread was about!!!
I am still pulling my hair out when it comes to colours but it is a fun challenge (sometimes..)
When I need to be a bit "creative" I work on generating my own stamp album pages for my Christmas stamp collections.
So thankful that my dad shared his love for stamp collecting when I was a child. It sure has helped me over the past year.
Janinne
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I have been concentrating recently on my collection of the Viet Minh issues of North Vietnam.
All but seven of the 63 basic, face-different stamps, as listed by Scott, are overprinted stamps of French Indochina. The remaining seven, new issues without overprints and featuring images of Ho Chi Minh, were issued in 1946-1948. Not until 1951 were new North Vietnam stamps issued, no doubt because of the vicissitudes of the First Indochina War between the forces of the communist Ho Chi Minh and the France. That war ended with the defeat of French forces at Dien Bien Phu in 1954, so, naturally, the Americans leaped at the opportunity to take their place, not bothering to figure out how the French were defeated. My interest in Vietnamese philately came about only because the U.S. Navy decided to loan me to a Marine battalion that landed in South Vietnam in January, 1966.
Scott lists only mint prices of the Vietminh stamps. The stamps were used on cover, but only in North Vietnam; at best, they are rare on cover, so rare that only this month I found one being offered by a dealer on Delcampe. I bought it, but I have not yet received it.
Used Viet Minh stamps seem to be as rare as covers of this period. I have just three CTOs, which may well be fakes, and certainly weren’t postally used. (The presence or absence of gum is moot because none of the Viet Minh or North Vietnam stamps of this period were issued with gum.
Recently I obtained one particular stamp — “Planting Rice” — that I’ve been searching for for several years. It’s the blue stamp on this album page:
Here’s a larger image of the stamp:
Last year, an eBay seller was offering a “Planting Rice” stamp on cover, but I didn’t bite: both the stamp and the cover were badly damaged, and there is some question whether the stamp itself is legitimate. According to the Specialized Postage Stamps Catalogue of North Vietnam, “The 1941 rice issue (Paris print)overprint is set apart as the publisher was informed, by a stamp collector who was in Hanoi during 1945-1946 that it was not a legal issue and was never used legitimately.” Scott, however, does not set the stamp apart, and in fact lists it as the most valuable of them all, at US $60.
The Viet Minh stamps present more mysteries than answers. It’s not clear exactly when they were printed, or how they were used, and I have little doubt that many of the overprints are fake.
Bob
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Working on the King George V Silver Jubilee series......so many yet to find
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"The Viet Minh stamps present more mysteries than answers. It’s not clear exactly when they were printed, or how they were used, and I have little doubt that many of the overprints are fake"
I love a good dose of synchronicity. Before today I wasn't aware of the Planting Rice stamp, and now I find this online whilst browsing a New Zealand seller's website!
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I have no focused on any one country and just deal with countries that come my way.
As of late, some countries have been Trinidad Tobago. Singapore, Malawi, Ifni, and Malaysia.
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I just started to update an old Austria collection my dad had started years ago. Most of what my father had - I have been selling off for years here and elsewhere. I kept some of the countries to add to what I collect myself. My grandfather was from Austria - so I was about ready to break up the collection and then I decided NO !! - I will keep it and add to it. The Scott pages go up to 2006 and I need to decide if I should go back and try to find the supplements from 2007 on - or just leave it to 2006. My first purchases here actually were Austria stamps that Soundcrest had in an approval book. The older material is fairly complete except for some of the more expensive issues. I am glad I kept it and did not break it up for sale. Sorry to some of my buyers who I know would have devoured some approval books of these stamps ! Steve
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I have also been working on my worldwide postal history collection.
This is an example of the Warsaw postal authority of German occupied Poland during WWI.
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I am currently focused on Bermuda and the Falkland Islands. My Bermuda collection, with the exception of the very expensive items, is nearly complete. I have been focused on Bermuda postal history for the last couple of years.
I like collecting paquebot covers related to both Bermuda and the Falklands, as well as censored covers from the world wars.
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In the past week I have been working on:
- United States
- Netherlands Indies
- Indonesia
David
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@DaveSheridan
The "Planting Rice" stamp you found seems to be postally used, not CTO. If you're not interested in buying it, I'd like to take a look at it. Do you have the URL?
Bob
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It does look postally used, and not my area, so happy to help.
https://www.classicstamps.co.nz/rDetails1b.asp?cat=MiscellaneousWorld&CAT2=&rProductID=INV-40591&this=it
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My main area of interest at the moment is the Netherlands Indies from 1864 till Indonesian independence in 1949 Including the Japanese occupation.
Brian
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Lundy Island, Italian pneumatic post, and SMOM.
Not very busy.
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I have been trying to run down more information on some of my Minnesota post offices such as the Bianca post office below.
The town of Bianca no longer exists, but was located in Wright County. I have since learned that it was located in the Silver Creek township which narrows it down considerably. I received an old platte map of the township that supposedly has the town on it, but I haven't been able to locate it yet. The post office was open from 1858 to 1864 so it is not surprising that it is a challenge to find more information.
Even more enigmatic is the Neville, Winona County post office, open 1870-1872. Thus far the only information I have found is that there was a Patrick Neville who settled in Wilson Township in Winona County. Whether he is related in any way to the post office is ephemeral at best. I have written a note to the Winona County historical society to see if they have any information.
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I've been spending my collecting time as of late focusing on my Michigan postmark collection.
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I've been spending most of my time on my New Jersey postmarks. I have a couple daily searches set up on eBay that pretty much bring them right to me. It's getting tough to find ones I don't have, but every so often I get lucky!
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"What States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?"
I am in a "state" of CHAOS at the moment, my wife said I had to replace the carpet in my stamp room. I had to remove my desk by removing the contents of all the drawers and then clean out the entire closet in there. Wow! What a job, but I am finding things I have not seen for years. I am going to re-organize what goes back in there, and it will be all good in the end. Carpet is down, and my desk is back in there, and I am sorting covers at the moment, finding all kinds of stuff.
As Red Green would say: " I'm a man, I can change, if I have to, I guess."
Linus
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I've been saving US (mnh) of the years each of my 4 grandkids were born. I'm about 80% complete on all of them, and finding the rest is getting more and more difficult but I'll eventually finish them. In the mean time a friend gave me about 100 Disney stamps from around the world. After research, there is a total of almost 2000 but I decided to see how far I can get in them. Of course I can't do a heck of a lot because I haven't dug my desk out from the bills and junk mail piled up after my last illness. I'll get there though.
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I was going through my "to be mounted" book and starting redoing a few Steiner pages for Great Britain.
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smauggie, I too immensely enjoy decoding the puzzles that reveal the locations of a long-defunct DPOs.
There is definitely an old town center in Silver Creek, MN, which fits the location that banknoteguy posted. The main intersection appears to be dominated by "Up the Creek Grill & Bar", 4246 112th St NW, Silver Creek, MN 55358.
Here's a capture from Google Maps' street view:
I'd check out that date stone in the middle of the facade! And, then I'd go in for a beer and strike up a conversation with the oldest patron present.
Also, at Jim Forte's website, searching Silver Creek and Bianca is interesting. One plausible story (from the dates) is that Silver Creek and Bianca were separate POs until 1864. After that, Bianca was absorbed by Silver Creek? Also, apparently Silver Creek is not (yet) a DPO. It's a long-shot, but the PM may have some idea of its history.
-Paul
PS, in the mid-nineteenth century, as railways developed, POs were often co-located with train stations. So, old railway maps may sometimes offer clues.
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Per original post offices...
I've done some sleuthing around locally and found some information. First I took a look at the village of Pughtown, which doesn't currently have it's own post office and found an old listing that gave the global coordinates for the post office. I put them into Google Maps and an old building, now a flower shop came up. I found it was a general store with a postal counter.
In my own town, the Lionville post office, again a DPO, was again in the general store. The building still exists but is all apartments today.
For the Exton post office. As above, it was in an old Inn next to the railroad tracks. That building exists and is apartments today. The second post office was in a general store at the corner of Lincoln Highway (Route 30) and Pottstown Pike (Route 100). There is nothing on that corner now, but I found it on a 1950 aerial photo. Both those roads are now six lanes at that intersection so it appears that it was in the middle of the roadway. I think about that when I sit at that light.
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Very cool, Tom.
smauggie, I was scanning my new PA Postal History Society newsletter, and was reminded of the David Rumsey map collection, here:
David Rumsey Map Collection
I searched "Wright County Minnesota", and got a nice map showing the townships, published in 1874 (too late for Bianca). Here's part of Silver Creek township:
Notice, near the center of the image, in Section 6: "Silver Creek P.O.", right near the western boundary of the township. When I try to correlate that location in Googlemaps, I first notice that the features (eg, lake shapes) on the old map look vastly different than what the satellite sees. But, I would put the (former) location of that PO right about here (lat,long): 45.311456, -94.010680. It's now a farmstead.
-Paul
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I think you have found it Paul. The town of Silver Creek proper is just north of Silver Lake. It is interesting then that there should be a post office a way off to the west of town. I also note that the post office was on land owned by the same person who owned the sawmill north of town. It was quite often businessmen who added a post office to their business for convenience and profit.
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I heard back from the Winona Historical Society. They sent me a newspaper clipping.
The original postmaster of the Neville post office is Jepe Peter Neville. It seems he went more by Peter.
Having localized the post office in Dresbach Township I found a written history of the township online. http://history.rays-place.com/mn/wi-dresbach.htm
It mentions that, "Then Henry Becker moved the post office building of Peter Neville from Richmond, and converted it into a store building with a saloon under the warehouse." The town he moved it to was Dakota one of the small towns that dot the banks of the Mississippi river in Minnesota.
J. P. Neville was also a Justice of the Peace for Dresbach Township, and he may have opened a post office to work in coordination with this post. It makes sense, then that this cover is addressed to a judge. It is noted that he also owned at least for a time, a store in the town of Dakota.
At this point the only town in the environs that seems to have survived is Dakota.
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Interesting, smauggie.
It is stunning to compare the two plat maps above (the one I posted, and the one you posted). I would guess, because of more numerous property owners and smaller parcels, that your map was published after mine (1874). But, what's remarkable is how vastly different the shapes of lakes and roadways are between the two maps. And then, when you compare either map to a current satellite view, you see how poorly they represent actual shapes, even considering that roadways may have been regraded in the interim.
My dad was a country veterinarian, and always carried several plat books with him in his vehicle, for Jones, Clinton, and Jackson counties, in Iowa. I never really noticed much difference between the maps and the landscapes they represented...
-Paul
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I am almost done moving my collection of commemoratives to my new hingeless album up to 1966. What a mess some of them are! But right down to the cancellation I recognize them from my childhood. - Quick question. Who the heck was Dr. Ephraim McDowell? - :-)
I also found in my boxes the US Capitol United States Stamp Album published by Grossman and filled with commemoratives hinged with Dennison hinges! So I have a few nicer copies going in, but will continue to upgrade to MNH. What a weird and wonderful hobby.
Geoff
"Ephraim McDowell was an American physician and pioneer surgeon. The first person to successfully remove an ovarian tumor, he has been called "the father of ovariotomy" as well as founding father of abdominal surgery."
(Modified by Moderator on 2021-05-05 19:50:49)
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Thanks! The question was a bit tongue in cheek. Certainly someone to honor more than say, Daffy Duck.
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For the last 2 days it has been Singapore. I keep scans of all my collection so part of the process is noting the page number (used as part of filename) and logging it in a spreadsheet as well as updating StampManage (used for inventory).
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I have been working on my USA collection. I have been making pages that have been missing from the supplements I buy. I was very happy to have gotten those extra pages made and the stamps mounted. I am currently working on 2020 stamps and will move to BOB next.
I first started collecting when I was about 14 and my grandmother gave me the Travaler worldwide album. I had put that album away shortly after and finished high school and got married family and such. Picked up the hobby again about 30ish for a couple years then set aside until about 6years or so ago and have been steady at it since except when health issues arise. My main collection is USA. I also have Disney, JFK, and triangles. I was going to pick up with WW from the album my grandmother gave me but that was way to many stamps. So all the WW I had I sent to a lady on here.
Happy stamping all,
Carabop
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Auctions - Approvals
It is Sunday evening here and I'm working through some of my recent purchases, marking them off in my catalog and putting them in my albums using Bill Steiner pages, when I started to wonder "What countries/states are you all focusing on in your collections at the moment"? And if you are a single country collector, what aspect of your collection are you focusing on at the moment?
I'm finding that I'm focusing on a bit of an odd mix at the moment: Papua & New Guinea, Ceylon and Jersey. I find that my focus changes quite often and is quite influenced by what is offered in the Auctions.
Looking forward to hearing what you are focusing on.
Tim.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Last few weeks: New Zealand, Australia, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Poland
Next few weeks (probably): Hyderabad, Albania, Yugoslavia, Serbia, Norway
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Currently, Australia, NZ, France, South Africa, Ceylon and Ireland. Ongoing GB and Isles, filling some of the expensive gaps.
In the background various Commonwealth and Germany. Many of which I have not even sorted what I have in country envelopes and page protectors.
Not even looking at the mass of Canadian or USA in albums and bags, they just do not hold any interest for me.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Thailand, Cape of Good Hope, Nyasaland. I will eventually get back to my Windsor GB album and maybe start on the Machins.
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Auctions
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
In my main personal collection, I mainly focus on the Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Greenland, Faroe Islands and Aland. Because most of my few blank spots will never be filled because of finances, I am dabbling in other areas like French Colonies and Papua New Guinea and a little in Germany.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
In general, British Commonwealth.
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Approvals
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Just about everything from anywhere, postally used with an emphasis on nature - wildlife, plants, landscapes, fishing , hunting and so on.
I am happy when I find stamps like these at $1-$2/piece, but if nothing like that is out there, I go after some regular postage stamps.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Filling gaps in my GB QV section of the Windsor album and all-Empire KGV as usual.
I don't know how you WW collectors do it!
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have spent the last few days selecting stamps for Liechtenstein and Egypt for my International 1840-1963 albums and have mostly completed these except for the early issues for Egypt. In addition I have been filling in phosphor and odd watermark issues for Great Britain and made a huge leap on Australia issues for the International albums as well. I, also, added about a hundred miscellaneous items from a pick book for the International Part I album across the A-Bermuda countries. Still just shy of 40% of all stamps for the International albums for 1840-1963 as a group but now have 40%+ of the stamps for the 1840-1940 (I), 1940-1949 (II), and 1956-1959 (IV) albums.
I, also, acquired a large lot of 1990-1998 issues for Great Britain to fill in the more modern releases for my Great Britain album although these have not made it into my album as yet. Hopefully I will have enough clear Scott/Prinz mounts on hand to complete these additions over the next week or so. I am thinking about taking a stab at some of the Great Britain regional issues in a week or so as well. A local stamp dealer has a collection with those pages included and may be willing to sell the regionals separately as he sold me the 1990-1998 issues from that collection at a bit below face value. It was quite amazing how much face value was issued by Great Britain during that time period.
I have a small backlog of new acquisitions for my new attempt on the Smithsonian Stamp for Every Country album to add as well.
I suspect that my acquisitions will slow for a month or so as I start to do some more clean-up of my "stamp" room and prepare some older feeder albums for disposal after rechecking them for some stamps for the new Smithsonian album project.
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Retired Ap. Book Mod, Pres Golden Gate Stamp Club, Hi Tech Consultant
26 Apr 2021
02:19:21am
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Belgium Monaco and Luxembourg mostly back of the book, mostly some pretty expensive stuff...but I seem to be able to get enough rare material week after week without breaking the bank. Is it my imagination, or are there some serious bargains (I mean 10%-15% of Cat) to be had out there...if you are patient enough? It is not coming for occasional sellers, but from some pretty serious dealers. Too much inventory that is not moving is my guess, and a lot of competition in the 20% to 40% of cat value it seems.
On some of my advance collections, getting one stamp a week is a pretty good accomplishment. I need to narrow my focus (same old song would say my wife), but when I want to have some cheap thrills, I look no further for the inexpensive stamps than the Mexico Exporta stamps. Since time is still not an issue, it can amuse me, and challenge me...while 4 years ago it drove me batty!
rrr....
aaah and French colonies...
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I've been collecting stamps since I was 14.
In the early years the Netherlands and Indonesia.
Then switched to Germany and everything that goes with it.
If you do not know what I mean look at all my posts in the section Europe / Germany
The collections of the Netherlands and Indonesia exchanged for all kinds of German stamps.
At the end of the nineties I started again with the Netherlands but in 2006 stopped with that. (also stopped with the new issues of Germany in 2006, but bought a little collection from 2006 - 2017 so.........)
Now I am looking forward to picking up Indonesia again. (Not sure yet)
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07:59:26am
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
It's interesting that "focus" to us seems to involve at least a half a dozen different countries!
I recently upgraded to the first two volumes of the hingeless Mystic Heirloom albums and I am in the process of moving stamps into them. They are nice for the price. It cuts off at 1966 and that is a good year to stop (I have plenty post-1966 but not worth a new album). At some point I will get their back of the book volume.
I've been transferring used commemoratives from the '40's and '50's and realized that many of the stamps, used, were from my original collection back in the '60's! And boy, are they in bad shape! Thins, tears, layers of hinges, a mess. My focus will be the fairly inexpensive project of upgrading everything from the Prexies to 1966 to MNH. I recently won at auction a set of unused Prexies so I figure that is a good place to start.
Of course, this may change. I have some GB that I need to put in my album, and I have a pile of Cayman Islands that I have done nothing with. I have the new English Michel German Empire catalog so I want to review my collection to make sure everything is identified correctly. And I have not looked at Norway in a while. And what about Canada?
Sigh...
Geoff
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
i oversaw the dismemberment and subsequent lotting of a collection belonging to a member of my local club. This was a 2-volume and 4-volume sets of Scott international, the first ending at 1949 and the second at 1955. Those pages not taken by others to lot I did myself, and will look at Germany in a week or two with an aim to fill spots in my collection, then lot it for the club auction.
I also organized a large lot of Christmas, Easter, and other types of charity sheets, filing in glassine books. Jan-Simon was the beneficiary of some of the Danish sheets to help with his collection. I kept tabs on the sheets with the goal of creating a more useful inventory system. Right how it's on paper, waiting to be transferred onto excel, just like my collection of tied Christmas seals.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Well lately its been filling spaces in the good old Scott Internationals to 1969 and what modern Canada comes along.
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I’m still focused on USA. My collection of singles, plate blocks and first day covers is pretty complete for 20th Century, what’s left are 19th Century rarer and more expensive stamps. For instance I need the Columbian $3-4-5 values.
I’m also picking up unusual usage since my albums allow for including anything I wish. For instance I just bought two 1904 Worlds Fair post cards to add to that stamp issue.
As I sort covers and postcards I’ve been putting aside those with Christmas seals. I guess I’m working on a set on cover, preferably tied by cancel. I’m also putting aside postal cards and may assemble those into an album.
Of course I’m still looking for interesting covers on my Ben Franklin Series of 1902. Lately I’ve been adding US naval cancels from 1908-10.
And I’m focusing daily on my New Jersey cancels on full cover. I have my favorite dealers on eBsy search for NJ so I get emails daily of their new listings.
I am collecting one country but have found many areas of interest to keep me busy and interested!
So I’m focused
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12:45:07pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Moving my ww -> 1940 collection into Steiner pages. Austria done yesterday, Ireland next. Approaching 9 % coverage according to the BigBlue Excel sheet.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
At this moment my main focus is on Danish Christmas seals, although I am slowly widening the net to include other Nordic seals. I just added my first seals from the Faroes and Greenland.
I am very pleased with the pre-war Aalborg local Christmas seals I received last week. They are very beautiful.
Other than that, I recently started collections of Danzig and General Gouvernement (German occupation of Poland during WW2). It's nice to have something new to work on.
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Venezuela
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03:32:58pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have a fairly extensive list of countries and areas I collect and have a want list for each of them. I don't usually concentrate on any particular area, I try to look for any stamp from any area I am missing. With some of the areas it's much more difficult because of price, almost all of the US and Canada I am missing are expensive! I have to really think hard if I'm going to add stamps from these two countries. The only Canadian stamps that are really affordable would be some of the Newfoundland stamps and we're still looking at $30, at least, per item. Almost all of the US I can afford are BOB, with a few exceptions that I keep my eyes open for. Lately I seem to be concentrating on the small number of newer Poland and Russia stamps I am missing. Thanks to Steve I just finished Poland Generalgovernment stamps, he had the one stamp I was missing. I just finished Nyassa except for the Lisbon printing of of the 1921 series. Maybe it's time to try to complete Mozambique Company which is quite affordable.
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03:40:53pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Hi All
I have decided to focus on South and Latin American stamps for awhile. I am doing my best to catalogue the stamps I have and to print out Steiner pages as well. I was excited when I saw the thread on the Mexico Export stamps as I spent a good day trying to decipher some of the ones I had and actually knew what the thread was about!!!
I am still pulling my hair out when it comes to colours but it is a fun challenge (sometimes..)
When I need to be a bit "creative" I work on generating my own stamp album pages for my Christmas stamp collections.
So thankful that my dad shared his love for stamp collecting when I was a child. It sure has helped me over the past year.
Janinne
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I have been concentrating recently on my collection of the Viet Minh issues of North Vietnam.
All but seven of the 63 basic, face-different stamps, as listed by Scott, are overprinted stamps of French Indochina. The remaining seven, new issues without overprints and featuring images of Ho Chi Minh, were issued in 1946-1948. Not until 1951 were new North Vietnam stamps issued, no doubt because of the vicissitudes of the First Indochina War between the forces of the communist Ho Chi Minh and the France. That war ended with the defeat of French forces at Dien Bien Phu in 1954, so, naturally, the Americans leaped at the opportunity to take their place, not bothering to figure out how the French were defeated. My interest in Vietnamese philately came about only because the U.S. Navy decided to loan me to a Marine battalion that landed in South Vietnam in January, 1966.
Scott lists only mint prices of the Vietminh stamps. The stamps were used on cover, but only in North Vietnam; at best, they are rare on cover, so rare that only this month I found one being offered by a dealer on Delcampe. I bought it, but I have not yet received it.
Used Viet Minh stamps seem to be as rare as covers of this period. I have just three CTOs, which may well be fakes, and certainly weren’t postally used. (The presence or absence of gum is moot because none of the Viet Minh or North Vietnam stamps of this period were issued with gum.
Recently I obtained one particular stamp — “Planting Rice” — that I’ve been searching for for several years. It’s the blue stamp on this album page:
Here’s a larger image of the stamp:
Last year, an eBay seller was offering a “Planting Rice” stamp on cover, but I didn’t bite: both the stamp and the cover were badly damaged, and there is some question whether the stamp itself is legitimate. According to the Specialized Postage Stamps Catalogue of North Vietnam, “The 1941 rice issue (Paris print)overprint is set apart as the publisher was informed, by a stamp collector who was in Hanoi during 1945-1946 that it was not a legal issue and was never used legitimately.” Scott, however, does not set the stamp apart, and in fact lists it as the most valuable of them all, at US $60.
The Viet Minh stamps present more mysteries than answers. It’s not clear exactly when they were printed, or how they were used, and I have little doubt that many of the overprints are fake.
Bob
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08:19:15pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Working on the King George V Silver Jubilee series......so many yet to find
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"The Viet Minh stamps present more mysteries than answers. It’s not clear exactly when they were printed, or how they were used, and I have little doubt that many of the overprints are fake"
I love a good dose of synchronicity. Before today I wasn't aware of the Planting Rice stamp, and now I find this online whilst browsing a New Zealand seller's website!
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have no focused on any one country and just deal with countries that come my way.
As of late, some countries have been Trinidad Tobago. Singapore, Malawi, Ifni, and Malaysia.
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I just started to update an old Austria collection my dad had started years ago. Most of what my father had - I have been selling off for years here and elsewhere. I kept some of the countries to add to what I collect myself. My grandfather was from Austria - so I was about ready to break up the collection and then I decided NO !! - I will keep it and add to it. The Scott pages go up to 2006 and I need to decide if I should go back and try to find the supplements from 2007 on - or just leave it to 2006. My first purchases here actually were Austria stamps that Soundcrest had in an approval book. The older material is fairly complete except for some of the more expensive issues. I am glad I kept it and did not break it up for sale. Sorry to some of my buyers who I know would have devoured some approval books of these stamps ! Steve
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have also been working on my worldwide postal history collection.
This is an example of the Warsaw postal authority of German occupied Poland during WWI.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I am currently focused on Bermuda and the Falkland Islands. My Bermuda collection, with the exception of the very expensive items, is nearly complete. I have been focused on Bermuda postal history for the last couple of years.
I like collecting paquebot covers related to both Bermuda and the Falklands, as well as censored covers from the world wars.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
In the past week I have been working on:
- United States
- Netherlands Indies
- Indonesia
David
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
@DaveSheridan
The "Planting Rice" stamp you found seems to be postally used, not CTO. If you're not interested in buying it, I'd like to take a look at it. Do you have the URL?
Bob
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
It does look postally used, and not my area, so happy to help.
https://www.classicstamps.co.nz/rDetails1b.asp?cat=MiscellaneousWorld&CAT2=&rProductID=INV-40591&this=it
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
My main area of interest at the moment is the Netherlands Indies from 1864 till Indonesian independence in 1949 Including the Japanese occupation.
Brian
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12:01:07pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Lundy Island, Italian pneumatic post, and SMOM.
Not very busy.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have been trying to run down more information on some of my Minnesota post offices such as the Bianca post office below.
The town of Bianca no longer exists, but was located in Wright County. I have since learned that it was located in the Silver Creek township which narrows it down considerably. I received an old platte map of the township that supposedly has the town on it, but I haven't been able to locate it yet. The post office was open from 1858 to 1864 so it is not surprising that it is a challenge to find more information.
Even more enigmatic is the Neville, Winona County post office, open 1870-1872. Thus far the only information I have found is that there was a Patrick Neville who settled in Wilson Township in Winona County. Whether he is related in any way to the post office is ephemeral at best. I have written a note to the Winona County historical society to see if they have any information.
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I've been spending my collecting time as of late focusing on my Michigan postmark collection.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I've been spending most of my time on my New Jersey postmarks. I have a couple daily searches set up on eBay that pretty much bring them right to me. It's getting tough to find ones I don't have, but every so often I get lucky!
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
"What States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?"
I am in a "state" of CHAOS at the moment, my wife said I had to replace the carpet in my stamp room. I had to remove my desk by removing the contents of all the drawers and then clean out the entire closet in there. Wow! What a job, but I am finding things I have not seen for years. I am going to re-organize what goes back in there, and it will be all good in the end. Carpet is down, and my desk is back in there, and I am sorting covers at the moment, finding all kinds of stuff.
As Red Green would say: " I'm a man, I can change, if I have to, I guess."
Linus
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I've been saving US (mnh) of the years each of my 4 grandkids were born. I'm about 80% complete on all of them, and finding the rest is getting more and more difficult but I'll eventually finish them. In the mean time a friend gave me about 100 Disney stamps from around the world. After research, there is a total of almost 2000 but I decided to see how far I can get in them. Of course I can't do a heck of a lot because I haven't dug my desk out from the bills and junk mail piled up after my last illness. I'll get there though.
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I was going through my "to be mounted" book and starting redoing a few Steiner pages for Great Britain.
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09:14:43am
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
smauggie, I too immensely enjoy decoding the puzzles that reveal the locations of a long-defunct DPOs.
There is definitely an old town center in Silver Creek, MN, which fits the location that banknoteguy posted. The main intersection appears to be dominated by "Up the Creek Grill & Bar", 4246 112th St NW, Silver Creek, MN 55358.
Here's a capture from Google Maps' street view:
I'd check out that date stone in the middle of the facade! And, then I'd go in for a beer and strike up a conversation with the oldest patron present.
Also, at Jim Forte's website, searching Silver Creek and Bianca is interesting. One plausible story (from the dates) is that Silver Creek and Bianca were separate POs until 1864. After that, Bianca was absorbed by Silver Creek? Also, apparently Silver Creek is not (yet) a DPO. It's a long-shot, but the PM may have some idea of its history.
-Paul
PS, in the mid-nineteenth century, as railways developed, POs were often co-located with train stations. So, old railway maps may sometimes offer clues.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Per original post offices...
I've done some sleuthing around locally and found some information. First I took a look at the village of Pughtown, which doesn't currently have it's own post office and found an old listing that gave the global coordinates for the post office. I put them into Google Maps and an old building, now a flower shop came up. I found it was a general store with a postal counter.
In my own town, the Lionville post office, again a DPO, was again in the general store. The building still exists but is all apartments today.
For the Exton post office. As above, it was in an old Inn next to the railroad tracks. That building exists and is apartments today. The second post office was in a general store at the corner of Lincoln Highway (Route 30) and Pottstown Pike (Route 100). There is nothing on that corner now, but I found it on a 1950 aerial photo. Both those roads are now six lanes at that intersection so it appears that it was in the middle of the roadway. I think about that when I sit at that light.
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02:21:52pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Very cool, Tom.
smauggie, I was scanning my new PA Postal History Society newsletter, and was reminded of the David Rumsey map collection, here:
David Rumsey Map Collection
I searched "Wright County Minnesota", and got a nice map showing the townships, published in 1874 (too late for Bianca). Here's part of Silver Creek township:
Notice, near the center of the image, in Section 6: "Silver Creek P.O.", right near the western boundary of the township. When I try to correlate that location in Googlemaps, I first notice that the features (eg, lake shapes) on the old map look vastly different than what the satellite sees. But, I would put the (former) location of that PO right about here (lat,long): 45.311456, -94.010680. It's now a farmstead.
-Paul
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I think you have found it Paul. The town of Silver Creek proper is just north of Silver Lake. It is interesting then that there should be a post office a way off to the west of town. I also note that the post office was on land owned by the same person who owned the sawmill north of town. It was quite often businessmen who added a post office to their business for convenience and profit.
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I heard back from the Winona Historical Society. They sent me a newspaper clipping.
The original postmaster of the Neville post office is Jepe Peter Neville. It seems he went more by Peter.
Having localized the post office in Dresbach Township I found a written history of the township online. http://history.rays-place.com/mn/wi-dresbach.htm
It mentions that, "Then Henry Becker moved the post office building of Peter Neville from Richmond, and converted it into a store building with a saloon under the warehouse." The town he moved it to was Dakota one of the small towns that dot the banks of the Mississippi river in Minnesota.
J. P. Neville was also a Justice of the Peace for Dresbach Township, and he may have opened a post office to work in coordination with this post. It makes sense, then that this cover is addressed to a judge. It is noted that he also owned at least for a time, a store in the town of Dakota.
At this point the only town in the environs that seems to have survived is Dakota.
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12:54:03pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Interesting, smauggie.
It is stunning to compare the two plat maps above (the one I posted, and the one you posted). I would guess, because of more numerous property owners and smaller parcels, that your map was published after mine (1874). But, what's remarkable is how vastly different the shapes of lakes and roadways are between the two maps. And then, when you compare either map to a current satellite view, you see how poorly they represent actual shapes, even considering that roadways may have been regraded in the interim.
My dad was a country veterinarian, and always carried several plat books with him in his vehicle, for Jones, Clinton, and Jackson counties, in Iowa. I never really noticed much difference between the maps and the landscapes they represented...
-Paul
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06:30:44pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I am almost done moving my collection of commemoratives to my new hingeless album up to 1966. What a mess some of them are! But right down to the cancellation I recognize them from my childhood. - Quick question. Who the heck was Dr. Ephraim McDowell? - :-)
I also found in my boxes the US Capitol United States Stamp Album published by Grossman and filled with commemoratives hinged with Dennison hinges! So I have a few nicer copies going in, but will continue to upgrade to MNH. What a weird and wonderful hobby.
Geoff
"Ephraim McDowell was an American physician and pioneer surgeon. The first person to successfully remove an ovarian tumor, he has been called "the father of ovariotomy" as well as founding father of abdominal surgery."
(Modified by Moderator on 2021-05-05 19:50:49)
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08:14:18pm
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
Thanks! The question was a bit tongue in cheek. Certainly someone to honor more than say, Daffy Duck.
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re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
For the last 2 days it has been Singapore. I keep scans of all my collection so part of the process is noting the page number (used as part of filename) and logging it in a spreadsheet as well as updating StampManage (used for inventory).
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11:20:48am
re: What Countries/States are you focusing on in your collection at the moment?
I have been working on my USA collection. I have been making pages that have been missing from the supplements I buy. I was very happy to have gotten those extra pages made and the stamps mounted. I am currently working on 2020 stamps and will move to BOB next.
I first started collecting when I was about 14 and my grandmother gave me the Travaler worldwide album. I had put that album away shortly after and finished high school and got married family and such. Picked up the hobby again about 30ish for a couple years then set aside until about 6years or so ago and have been steady at it since except when health issues arise. My main collection is USA. I also have Disney, JFK, and triangles. I was going to pick up with WW from the album my grandmother gave me but that was way to many stamps. So all the WW I had I sent to a lady on here.
Happy stamping all,
Carabop
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