2 Cent George Washington Embossed Envelope

I am looking for any pricing/buying/selling information on the pre-stamped envelope. My co-worker's father had gotten these some time near 1940 on the Navy ship he was serving on. Any feed back would be helpful. Thank you so much for your time.

The following pictures are of the custom box built on the ship to hold the boxes. These packages have stayed in the box this whole time. The date stamped on the envelope box was 12/31/42. One envelope package has never been opened. You can see the original tape still intact. I have tried to give a view of every angle that may be asked for.

There was a strong demand for pre-stamped air mail envelopes during World War II, especially among the military overseas. The POD met the demand by surcharging a quantity of little-demand 2c envelopes they had on hand.

I would need a closer scan of the indicia to be positive, but it appears your example is a Scott No. UC8 (die 1) catalog valued at $1.60 as an unused entire. I'm sure there are more detailed valuation listings elsewhere, as there is noted to be 10 surcharge varieties.

Thank you for the detailed information. I can upload a closer picture of the embossed head if that is what you need to see. You guys rock. I've been trying to do the research on my own and haven't gotten anywhere.

This is a UC8 (which is the Scott number for Die 1, of the four that are known for this overprint issue).

If you can provide us with the size of the envelope (length in mm is fine) and the watermark, we can tell you the catalog value, which ranges from $1.75 to $85.00 in the UPSS catalog.

The envelope is 17.2cm x 9.6cm (6 3/4" x 3 3/4"). I don't know what the watermark is or how to get a picture of it for you. I can take a closer picture of the stamp if that is what you need. If there is a watermark can you tell me where to find it? I've looked it over for any thing but I'm just not seeing it...

Ok, you have a size 13 envelope.

The watermark is in the paper. Spread the envelope open with two fingers and hold it up to the light. The watermark should appear several times throughout the envelope, but the precise location will be random.

The watermark will consist of two large interlocking you & S, with the date (e.g., "1941") interspersed within the US. There are several configurations of the way the date is laid out. The only dates you should see are 1929, 1933, 1937, or 1941.

Edit: reinsert "U" for "you", which seems to be the result of some over-zealous software function.

After preview I see the idiot software won't let me change it.

WOW! I really had to get a light. These are old. It says US with 1941 laid diagonal through it. What does that mean?

Watermark 38. So, the UPSS # for your envelope is AM32-38, with a catalog value of $1.75.

Disappointing, I'm sure, but mathematically expected.

As wt1 stated, there are 10 different overprints. The catalog value varies within the 10 from $1.75 to $8.00.

That was kind of expected. Any chance you know who might be in the market to pick some up? My co-worker is older and I'm trying to help him. I don't know a lot about stamps or how to sell them. Any input would be supper helpful. (Not that you haven't been an awesome help so far.)

What if he has the boxes the envelopes originally came in? He has 2 boxes. Both are 500 envelope boxes...

Hmmmm, chances are your co-worker's dad snagged a bunch from his ship and they probably are all the same. His best bet is to put them up on ebay, one at a time, with a complete description. He won't get much, but he may have the satisfaction of completing a sale.

To get the most complete description, need to determine the surcharge type (1 of 10). So, a better picture of the surcharge viewed straight on. We'll see if we can determine that sucker.

"He has 2 boxes. Both are 500 envelope boxes..."

Wow.

Do the boxes have any special markings? There might be someone interested in the history of these envelopes more than the envelopes themselves.

So here is some more of the story. His dad did get them while on the ship. The envelope boxes are still wrapped in the waxy waterproof paper. We are going to try to get a picture of the front box label.

updated images. Please let me know what you think. :}

Fabulous!

Still need a better picture (scan would be better) of the surcharge to determine which of the 10 types these envelopes are. And we can conclude they are all the same, based on the photos of the box.

But that doesn't really matter anymore. The value of these envelopes is not what you could sell them for, but rather the value of the package as a whole. Including the wooden box.

I'm guessing the Nat. Postal Museum would be interested. Cardinal Spellman. The APS if they have display space (someone should be able to chime in on that factoid). There's probably any number of high end collectors that would like to have the box and its contents.