I recently had the opportunity to acquire three additional on-cover solo uses of the 14¢. Two of the three are obviously philatelic in nature, but two of the three also show the 14¢ stamp paying specific rates for which I did not already have in my collection.
The earliest of the three covers dates from 1923, the same year the American Indian stamp was issued. This envelope was sent via air mail from San Francisco, California, to Millburn, New Jersey, and the American Indian stamp paid seven times the correct postage rate in effect at the time. That, along with the fact it was addressed to a well-known cover collector, leaves no doubt of the philatelic nature of the cover.
14¢ American Indian cover mailed via night air mail
Next up is a totally commercial cover mailed from New York City to Meriden, Connecticut, with the 14¢ stamp paying postage on a two-ounce letter at 2¢ per ounce plus 10¢ for special delivery. This rate was possible for over nine years from the date on which the stamp was issued, yet this is the first example of it I’ve ever seen.
14¢ American Indian cover mailed to Kelsey Press Company
Finally, we have a philatelic cover that shows the 14¢ stamp paying a specific rate. The envelope mailed from Pennsylvania to Syria needed 14¢ postage: 5¢ for surface transport from the United States to the Netherlands, and 9¢ for air mail service from Amsterdam to Syria. Despite its obviously philatelic nature—the addressee was not known but just happened to have the same first initial and last name as the sender—this is the only example I’ve seen of the American Indian stamp paying this particular rate.
14¢ American Indian first flight cover mailed to Aleppo, Syria
I can go months in between finding solo use examples of the 14¢ American Indian stamp, so to find three different covers on offer from the same dealer? That’s quite a treat.
American Heart Association BRE features heart, logo
I’ve previously shared scans of several business reply envelopes distributed in American Heart Association mailings. The latest example from that nonprofit arrived in my mailbox recently, and it’s pictured here.
American Heart Association business reply envelope with preprinted “I Love My Heart” designs
As you can see, the envelope bears five copies of a design featuring a heart with the words “I Love My Heart” and the American Heart Association name and logo. Each design has preprinted faux perforations.
At just 7¼ inches long, this business reply envelope is smaller than most I receive in nonprofit mailings, and while the design isn’t the most creative, I actually like it better than the generic birds and flowers used on many BREs. The designs on the envelope actually promote the organization that had it printed, which I think is an excellent approach.
Minnesota’s Como Park Post was quick out of the gate in 2025, issuing what had to be one of if not the first local post stamp of the new year January 4.
Como Park Post local post stamp
Como Park’s operator creates the woodcut dies from which he prints his stamps by hand. In thise case, I’mt not entirely certain what the stamp’s face value is. It looks very much like there is a “5” in the lower left corner, but if that’s the case, what are the characters in the other corners of the stamp? I’m not sure.
Bat’s Private Post issues Happy New Year souvenir sheet
I wrote last week about how Rocking Horse Farm Local Post and Purgatory Post had issued the last couple of new local post stamps in 2024, but it turns out I was wrong. While those two operations released some of the last local post stamps for the past calendar year, Beverly Hills-based Bat’s Private Post slipped in under the wire with a souvenir sheet released December 31. The theme was “Happy New Year.”
Bat’s Private Post Happy New Year souvenir sheet
The souvenir sheet contains six stamps ranging in value from 10¢ to $3. I suppose the fireworks stamp is “happy” (so long as you’re not a dog or a horse), but “happy new year” carries with it a darker undertone for the other stamps because there’s some truly horrible stuff going on in the world. And this souvenir sheet was issued before the New Orleans terror attack or the California wildfires!
At any rate, Bat’s probably wins the last local post stamp of 2024 award; there certainly can’t be any released any later than December 31!
Philosateleian Post sets record for second consecutive year
For the second consecutive year, Floresville-based Philosateleian Post in 2024 once again set new records for the total number of mailpieces processed.
In 2023, Philosateleian Post carried 525 pieces of outbound mail. Last year, the total was 575 pieces of outbound mail, an increase of nearly 10% over the previous year. Philosateleian Post also dealt with nearly 20 pieces of mail misdelivered by the United States Postal Service or addressed to unknown recipients.
The grand total included all-time single-year highs in the number of mailpieces processed in the letter, business mail, postcard, and international categories.
