"Natural" FDCs?

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my Philatelic Stronghold.

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Rice Cachets were published in Washington DC from 1932 to 1941 by a husband and wife team, Frederick R. and Wilna C. Rice (née Wilna Carolyn Vermillion). Wilna's first name is often misspelled "Wilma" in the FDC literature.

The First Rice Cachets were for the Washington Bicentennial Issue #704/715-3, and #U523/528-NIM, issued 1/1/32. (Monty et al., First Cachets Revealed, 2006, pp. 32, 629; Mellone, Planty Vol. III, 1995, p. 90). About 75% of Rice Cachets feature a standard motif consisting of a circle and seven-sided rosette surrounding illustrations and text relevant to the subject of the stamp for which the cachet is prepared. (Mellone and Newton, 1979, p. 45). Rice's first gold seal design was for an event cover (Anmuth, 1987, p. 352) rather than for an FDC; he initiated the gold seal design for FDCs on #724 and #725 Penn and Webster issues of 10/24/32,

At the time of the 1930 Census the Rices resided in a house which they owned, worth $9000, at 126 Linden Avenue (the numbering of addresses on Linden Ave has since changed), Ballston, Arlington VA, with a mailing address at P. O. Box 7, Arlington, VA. Frederick was employed as an Asst Cashier at the Veteran's Bureau in Washington, with a salary of $6793 in 1930. Wilna was employed as a Clerk in a "Gov. Office." (Perhaps Wilna Rice, like Madeline Nickles, worked at the Post Office Dept (does anyone know?). (1930 U.S. Census for Arlington VA

Frederick was born 1/17/1895 in Springfield, Massachusetts and Wilna was born 10/30/1894 in Kansas, and they married in 1908. Frederick was a World War I Veteran. At the time of the 1920 Census the Rices lived in Washington D.C. with Wilna's parents, John and Mary Vermillion. A year later Frederick and Wilna had a son Frederick R. Rice Jr., born 1921, (1930 U.S. Census, Arlington VA, Sheet 6 lines 50-51, accessed through ancestry.com 6/22/10)

"Rice not only produced cachets for almost every issued from 1932 to 1941, but was active in other areas of the hobby. He was the Washington correspondent for Western Stamp Collector as well as a frequent contributor to Linn's. He served as a director of the S.P.A. and also was president of the Collector's Club of Washington. . . . Like most other cachetmakers of that period, Rice did not earn a full time income from his cachetmaking and servicing of First Day Covers. With others such as Roessler, Crosby, and Gorham he did help build the foundation to make this aspect of the hobby as popular as it is today. . . . Living in the Washington area enabled Rice to obtain second day cancellations in DC for most issues. He frequently had his covers canceled on ships that were stationed in the area when a new stamp was issued. He had friends in the Post Office Department and was able to obtain information concerning new stamps, frequently before others. This enabled him to publish and distribute Rice's Weekly Postal News. This was a postcard size newsletter that reported the latest philatelic information from Washington." (Anmuth, 1987, pp. 351-2). Rice popularized the practice of collecting unaddressed FDCs, to the point where he is considered to be almost single-handedly responsible for the so-called "unaddressed premium." (Herst, 1993, p. 66)

Monty et al., First Cachets Revealed, 2006, p. 32, displays the Last Rice Cachet as #903-23, 3c Vermont Statehood, issued 3/4/41 (Mellone, FDCs of the 1940s, 2006, p. 36), but according to Wayne Anmuth, Rice produced later Cachets for the #C25/C31 Airplane Transport Series, the 50c value of which was issued 10/29/41. (See Anmuth, 1987, p. 352). I have a copy of a Rice #C30-20 (30c issued 9/25/41) and have seen a #C31 (50c issued 10/29/41) with the same kind of Rice cachet pictured as #C30-20 in Mellone, FDCs of the 1940s, 2006, p. 256). Rice retired to Florida after the C31 was issued on 10/29/41. (Anmuth, p. 352), where Frederick and Wilna lived at Ft. Myers Beach, Lee County, Fl 33931. Frederick Rice died 1/1/73 and Wilna died 2/19/76. (Social Security Death Records accessed through Ancestry.com, visited 6/22/10) Their son Frederick R. Rice, Jr., is listed a living member of the Stone Family Tree on Ancestry.com, with data hidden, and would be about 90 yeas old in 2010. (Ancestry.com, visited 6/22/10).