UNITED STATES LOCALS continued...

VERY FINE. ONE OF A HALF-DOZEN KNOWN EXAMPLES OF THE CARTER'S DISPATCH ENTIRE.

About a half-dozen examples of the Carter's embossed entire are known, including three addressed to Caleb D. West in Philadelphia with 3c 1851 stamps. A December 1851 usage with the Orange Brown tied by the Philadelphia & Baltimore Railroad datestamp realized $3,000 hammer in our Golden sale. The others are early 1852 usages with Brownish Carmine shades tied by Baltimore datestamps. Carter's post is thought to have ceased operation in 1851, prior to the time these covers were mailed. Even if Carter's post still existed, it is unlikely that the Philadelphia post office would turn mail received from Baltimore or the railroad route agent over to a private local post for street delivery. The best explanation for these late usages of the embossed entire is that they were used simply as envelopes (see Steven M. Roth's article in The Penny Post, November 1992). They are nonetheless rare and desirable, and they are the basis of the Scott listings.

Ex Brown, Caspary, Ward and Hall. (Image)

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. THE ONLY RECORDED COVER WITH THE CHEEVER & TOWLE STAMP TIED BY A HANDSTAMP.

Cheever & Towle's usual method of cancelling its stamps (if at all) was to apply a small "X" in manuscript, sometimes with an extra dash or two. This is the only cover in our records, the Sloane or Costales files that has the stamp cancelled and tied by the red oval marking.

Ex Boker and Golden (Siegel Sale 817, lot 902, realized $4,500 hammer) (Image)

A FINE EXAMPLE OF THE CHICAGO PENNY POST "BEEHIVE" STAMP WITH TRACES OF PERFORATIONS. NO MORE THAN THREE COVERS WITH THIS STAMP ARE KNOWN.

Ex Abt (illustrated in his Chicago series) and Golden (Siegel Sale 817, lot 918, realized $4,250 hammer) (Image)