Portugal : Po Box 506 [underground Mail]

There is something really fascinating with this cover (not mine)

Anybody care to explain what it may be?

Is it that it was "examined", has 2 revalued overprinted stamps, and doesn't appear to have been addressed to anyone- just an address?

It appears that PO Box 506 in Lisbon was quite famous as an underground mail forwarding address during World War II. Here's an article from the Perfin Society website that deals with such letters:

http://www.angelfire.com/pr/perfins...Oct2002.html

Ryan

The Thomas Cook Travel Agency operated PO Box 506 in Lisbon, Portugal as a mail service to those working in the underground in Nazi-occupied territories. This allowed people to send mail and not be able to be traced down. The mail was then taken to London, censored and delivered. I tried pretty hard, but could not make out the date of the postmark, but it is in the 1940's. Denmark was librated from Nazi control in 1945.

Yup I Googled "P O Box 506 Lisbon"

Well done everybody,
you passed the audition

I can see I am in highly educated company.

Great post Rodster!

Hi All

Some years ago there was an article in either the journal for the RPSC or the BNAPS, I forget which about Box 506 in Lisbon. It was described as a 'go between' for beligerant nations during WW II.

Most covers from Germany at this time were 'usually' franked with 100 pffenigs (1 Mark) for mail going to any of the Allied Nations. Of course, there were exceptions.

If I come across the article, I will put it in here.

Chimo

Bujutsu

Thanks Bujutsu,
I would like to see that, if you manage
to caome across it.

A few questions about the Box 506 Danish cover you have shown:
1. Is a scan of the back available?
2. Any others?
3. Assume no contents?
4. Is this in Australia now?
If you did not find some of the old articles detailing about the WWII Thomas Cook "undercover" mail scheme, I can send something along.
Attached is another Denmark Box 506 - here from 1943.

Hello efaser,
The cover is not mine, as advised.
It was trivia support, originally
supplied by a member of another NG.

Any other information would be welcomed
about Thomas Cook "in times of distress" covers Thank you.

Thomas Cook PO Boxes in the Netherlands were used for mail to and from occupied countries at the beginning of the war. When the Netherlands was occupied, the mail passed through PO Box 506 in Lisbon.

All mail posted in Denmark after August 1942 addressed to Thomas Cook's PO Box 506 in Lisbon was supposed to be returned to the senders by the German censorship (or that was the policy).

I don't have much more than this.

The article referred to by Bujustsu may be Herman Herst Jr. 'Great Britain's Unusual Postal System' in Stamp Mail, September 1992, pp225-7. I don't have it, but evidently the article dealt with mail to and from the Thomas Cook PO Boxes.

Fascinating field of study.

http://www.angelfire.com/pr/perfins...Oct2002.html

Here'a MORE

I don't know where I am going to store all this fascinating information. I am running out of brain space!

Attached is an example of a Box 601, Amsterdam usage from Germany. I am looking for a picture of any cover FROM Holland with the return address of Box 601, Amsterdam to probably Czechoslovakia, Poland, or Germany. Perhaps some of the known covers only have that information within the letter they would have contained?

https://www.stampcommunity.org/uplo...940to601.jpg

Since you are in Australia, there is a Box 520,Lisbon that was used just for Australia, apparently'

https://www.stampcommunity.org/uplo...bona-rrr.jpg

Marvelous contributions!
I like it when members add bits and pieces
to a discipline which builds a nice information
repository.