Various US Covers (Most Post-1940)

I wanted to share some covers I have. I know 3 out of the 5 I am sharing are modern. I also found a couple of pre-1940, one with a 1909 postmark and one with a 1926 postmark.

1909 cover; the stamp is partly illegible but the letter inside is dated 1909


1926 cover






I blanked out the recipient's name on the picture.

The White House cover is quite collectible if only because it was mailed the same week as the events of 9/11. It must have been an especially tense situation for the White House to get out their mail that week, especially since concern over anthrax attacks via the US Mail from that period were also at issue.

One question I have is, does size matter when it comes to covers? Are smaller ones more desirable? Or are there other factors that one focuses on?

I am a total newbie to stamps and covers.


-MV

Like anything else in stamps and covers, collect what you like.

Sure, the smaller 6.25" envelopes are desirable to most collectors because of the ease of storage and protection, but there are some larger business size envelopes, smaller "ladies covers" of the 19th century and specialty sized covers that can be collectible, too, because of the postal markings, postmarks and stamps that may have been used.

In my opinion, if you restrict yourself to only one size envelope, you're losing out on a lot in cover collecting.

Thanks wt1. I'm dipping my toes in the water a bit and sharing some of the items I have found.

I haven't spent any serious $$ yet as I am taking it slow, learning some of the terminology and reading some of the threads on here.

-MV

Size does matter in most cases. Anything other than a standard number 6 envelope, or one of about that size, is a difficult sell unless there is a reason for the cover to be larger or smaller. For example, ladies envelopes of the 1800s were mentioned and with those the smaller the better. Some are not much larger that the amount of envelope needed to write an address in small handwriting plus the stamp. And there are some larger covers that are the size of the standard number 11 business envelope that are sought because that is about all that was ever used such as US government penalty envelopes used for official mail in the 1900s. Another thing to look for is condition. Unless something is so rare that there are only a couple examples in the world, or unless damage is what is desired such as covers that were in aircraft wrecks, you want covers that are in very clean and undamaged condition. One last thing is clarity of markings. On several of the ones you show, the cancelations are a bit unclear. Most collectors want nice dark and completely legible markings and will pay less for those with illegible or difficult to make out.

Thanks for chiming in Kimo. That makes sense on the markings.

In the box of stamp related material I was given by my stepmother, there were some canceled stamps clipped from envelopes. I assume those are worth less than a whole envelope. I haven't looked at them in a while but I do recall there were some from Post Offices that no longer exist in Missouri.

I'm slowly picking up some of the basics here.

-MV

The StJoseph MO cancel is not common - I could use it for my flag cancel collection.

chasa you're more than welcome to print off the photo of the St. Joseph flag cancel if you'd like.


-MV

Yes, stamps clipped from covers are worth less than those on covers. If the cancellations are interesting it is usually better to leave the stamps on the clipped bit of envelope to preserve the full cancellation. If it is a common cancelation they tend to be better soaked off as that way a collector will be able to see the back of the stamp and the overall comdition of the stamp. With a very few exceptions, stamps issued after WW2 have little value other than something fun to collect. Before WW2 there are a greater number of stamps that do have some value but it is a mixed bag. You need a current catalog to determine which have commercial value. When you look at the catalog values you need to keep in mind that a typical commercial value for stamps in perfect condition runs around 30 percent of the catalog value so a stamp valued at $1.00 would sell for around 30 cents and that is if you can find a willing buyer which would take a bit of work. For the rare stamps, you might get more than 30 percent, and for the more common stamps you would likely get less than 30 percent.

Your St Joseph flag cancel is very desirable. Fred Langford's "Flag Cancel Encyclopedia" rates it at 80 points on a 1-100 scale, used 1923-26. An exact value for an 80 point flag is hard to state, and definitely worth keeping.

Thanks for the info John. I plan on keeping every cover and post card I find since I have so much to learn.

This family kept every letter, post card, bill, tax receipt, check, etc. that they ever received. I haven't found any cash though

-MV