Cancel Colors On 1851-57 3-Cent Imperforate Stamps #10, #11

The Scott Specialized Catalog of US Stamps & Covers lists 12 cancel colors on number 11A; blue, red, orange red, orange, brown, magenta, ultramarine, green, violet, purple, olive, and yellow; and a smaller subset on numbers 10, 10A, and 11.

Some of these colors are controversial, such as olive and green. A recent check on ebay shows three ads for olive cancels on this issue, but all are black cancels with too much oil in the cancel ink. Too much oil in black cancel ink is notorious for resulting in a greenish or olive appearance.

Does anyone have any of the scarcer 1851-57 3-Cent imperforate cancel colors they can show?

Below is an image showing green cancels at left and right, and what I believe is an olive cancel in the middle, on #11A.

Regarding green and olive cancels, does anyone know of a reference listing which towns are known to have used these colors? I believe the town on my center stamp is Lancaster PA, and on my right stamp is York PA. I'm not sure about the town on the left stamp. Going on a Pennsylvania hunch, Boswell would be the best fit for the left stamp.

Have you tried to find the article in the AP written by Dr. Ralph W. Payne? Chase said it contains a list of over 100 green town cancellations. It is pretty easy to get articles scanned and emailed from the APS.

Thanks, Sinclair. I searched online for that article, but didn't find it.

Does anyone have examples of green cancels from other towns? Anyone know of any olive cancel towns in addition to the Lancaster above?

Dr. Payne's list of green town marking is also found in volume two of Ashbrook's books on the one cent stamp,page 103.
Tom Bane

Thanks, Tom. I don't have access to Ashbrook's book either. That's OK. I'm not looking to complete a collection of green towns!

The Ashbrook books are also available on the USPCS website.

The left stamp must be from Roswell, GA.

I agree that the middle stamp is a Lancaster cancel but I wouldn't call it olive. I have seen a couple or a few olives and they aren't as bright and the color is indeed quite close to an olive.

I don't exactly go after colored cancels but I have a few. Here is a magenta Hartford, CT cancel. I have tried to sell the cover a couple times on ebay but nobody appreciated the cover as much as me.

Thanks for the info, Sinclair! Roswell, GA sounds like a nice fit.

Wow! Nice 1851 magenta cover! Thanks for showing it. That would have been sweet if the #10 was tied by the CDS.

I may have an orange cancel on cover.

Here's the probable Roswell, GA green CDS with an orange (or orange red) grid on a #10A; and red and blue on #11A:

It's a waste of time for me. I cannot get anything to scan as my eye sees it. I only have one that might be green. It's a Norfolk, VA. Everything else, under scrutiny, becomes black.

I also have, what I believe is Ultramarine.
Something faded that may have been a brown or yellow.

Here are a few more scanned as my eyes see the colors. The Philly cancel is a common dark blue. I would appreciate opinions on the first two.

The left looks like a purple. The center appears black.

That's an interesting response. I'm seeing purple on the left and light blue in the center.

I agree that the middle is a light blue. I have a couple Saco, ME cancels that are pretty close. I will try to post mine later.

I was going to say purple or a pale/under-inked ultramarine for the left stamp. If Krelyea is reading this thread he may still have an image of a very good example of an ultramarine cancel on a 3c 1851 that he sold on ebay a few years ago.

I need better eyes, scanner, monitor etc....

I'm trying to find a method for showing the cancel color. This is the one I believe could be yellow.

Here is the Norfolk I mentioned.