Modern Covers - What Is Worth While Keeping?

I have a lot of covers which over the past 50 years I have thrown into a box. Now I am going through them and trying to decide - since they are all pretty recent (e.g., pretty common) - as to what to put into an album or not.
For example, I have a cover sent to me when I was in the Air Force from the Commanding Officer at Fort Sill OK (where Geronimo served his remaining years, by the way). I am sure that many covers were sent from Fort Sill, but this one has cancellation mark for 100 years of service which would only be on covers for one year. Would that make it unique enough to not throw back into the box?
What are your thoughts on what would make a modern cover desirable.

I would hold onto that cover. Sometimes it is not the stamp that makes a cover it is the addressee, recipiant, and postal markings. Yesterdays junk mail is tomorrows postal history. However, it does come down to space you have available for storage. I am always looking for cancelations from towns found along route 66 during its heyday and commissioning 1926-1984, commercial use mail can be very interesting.

Let me put it this way, whatever you end up not keeping, feel free to send it my way.

Most of the most valuable postal history today because valuable over time as people began to study and appreciate how common or rare a particular postmark/cancellation/meter/usage/etc/etc really is. I have a few modern covers that I know will considered true rarities in 100 years time. I have many others that I have no idea and will have fun with should I live long enough to grow old.

All I can say is that I wish I had kept some of the
covers over the last 50 years instead of soaking off
the stamps.

They would be much more interesting for me now than just having
the stamps.

Official Business envelopes like the one you scanned would be worthwhile keeping in and of itself. The slogan postmark just adds a bit of local flavor to the cover.

Value is a relative thing, but if you are suggesting that all of the covers you have saved over the past 50 years fits into one box, and it doesn't impede your living with that extra box of material, I'd be inclined to keep it. I have found that just because there may not be major monetary value to the material, there is still much enjoyment to be had and it can be very satisfying and very relaxing in going through the covers every now and then.

I know from personal experience, that I have thumbed through the same stack of covers multiple times, and each time I find something new and/or different.

For a very thought-provoking Australian perspective on modern covers, do visit http://www.rap.com.au/rhome1c.asp, click on Rod's Columns, and scroll down to 'Woodchip-free Zone'. This a collection of columns from a local stamp magazine, written by a dealer and collector, on modern covers and postal history. While the points he makes about relative scarcity are particularly slanted towards Australia, I'm sure the same principles apply to many other countries.

A word of warning, though: you may need to set aside plenty of time to read, and space to keep your covers after you've read his columns.

Buckeye, when it comes to covers you would be amazed at what people collect..unusual cancels,postmarks..one fellow in Canada wants all my U.S. junkmail envelopes...Stamperdude wants covers from along route 66..i look for them here in the East but they are rare around here !!

I agree with the above. Lots of collectors (myself included) seek out covers from the mundane to unusual. A great look into postal history. It's not just the stamps. Cancels, labels, advertising, you name it it's all there.

On a side note, in a shameful plug, I've got many US covers available for sale at this post

https://goscf.com/t/16780

All the proceeds will be donated to this site. It's been on a while, but response has been disappointing, so I'm going to end it tonight. So slide on over, get your cover fix, and help support SCF.
thanks
James

Foresight today builds tomorrow's treasures!

I though I might put this into this thread as I'm not sure where else to put it I very much doubt that any other country would allow it.






At the time it was very controversial as religious postmarks had never been done for obvious reasons. The Thatcher era in Britain showed that money WAS everything and this postmark was allowed much to the displeasure of other religious groups. I believe it cost the "buyer" 50,000 pounds (around 80,000 USD) to have it attached to mail over a period of weeks. I'd be interested to see any other postmarks of a similar controversial nature though!

I'm sure that the US would allow it as we still have "In God we trust" on our currency

That "Jesus is Alive!" UK Slogan Postmark cost $88,500 for 6 weeks use.

Here's a period newspaper article about it:

So that makes that particular example a last day of use.

So that makes that particular example a last day of use.

I'm pretty sure there was a 4:30 post too so I did not quite get the last postmark of Jesus