United States and Confederate Stamps Postal History continued...

ONE OF FOUR RECORDED EXAMPLES OF THIS LOCAL POST STAMP AND THE ONLY STAMP KNOWN UNUSED. RARER THAN THE UNITED STATES ALEXANDRIA PROVISIONAL, THE BERMUDA PEROT PROVISIONAL, THE HAWAIIAN TWO-CENT MISSIONARY AND THE MAURITIUS POST OFFICE STAMPS.

Between the July 1845 commencement of William B. Stait's Eagle City Despatch Post and sometime before October 1, 1846, the post's advertised address was 85 Chestnut Street, which appears in the handstamped markings used during the first fifteen months. Beginning no later than October 1, 1846, the address changed to 80 Chestnut Street, where the allied Adams' office was located. The title was also changed to "Eagle City Post" at this point and was further shortened to "Eagle Post" (the title on this stamp) as early as March 1849. Beginning July 1850, the name change to Stait's Despatch is reflected in markings on covers. In September 1848 Stait expanded to a second office at 48 South 3rd Street (source: Gordon Stimmell, The Penny Post, Apr. 1991).

The 61L1 stamp is listed in Scott as the first Eagle City Post adhesive, but Scott's 1847 issue date is probably incorrect. The cogwheel stamp (61L2) is recorded used as early as October 1, 1846. Logically, the handstamped adhesive with the new 80 Chestnut Street address would have been issued before the printed stamps -- the presence of Stait's initials on two of the stamps indicates a sort of provisional issue. The shortened title ("Eagle Post") and absence of any reference to Adams' Express in the 61L1 stamp are more typical of the early 1849 period, but the abbreviated wording probably owes itself to space limitations in the marking. Curiously, both the handstamped adhesive and the printed stamp (61L2) show the misspelling "Chesnut".

Only four examples of 61L1 are recorded: 1) cut-square stamp initialled "WS", uncancelled, used on folded cover (reported 1847) to Emily S. Townsend, 101 Arch St., ex Caspary, Boker, 2) cut-square stamp, initialled "WS", on piece, ex Golden (Siegel Sale 817, lot 1031, realized $8,000 hammer), 3) irregular margins, unused (no initials), the stamp offered here, Siegel Sale 797, lot 1899, realized $12,500 hammer, and 4) cut to shape (no initials), affixed to cover with Norristown Pa. datestamp, addressed to local street address, ex Needham, Gibson, Middendorf. The lower right portion of the stamp shows very faint small printed letters -- an "N" appears most clearly just below the "T" of "Street". There is also a small loop of manuscript in the same area.

With 1997 P.F. certificate. Scott Retail $14,000.00 (Image)

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. ONLY SIX PRIEST'S 121L6 COVERS ARE RECORDED IN ROTH CENSUS.

The Roth census (Penny Post, January 1994) lists six 121L6 covers, including four in combination with the 3c 1851. With 2007 P.F. certificate (Image)

FINE APPEARANCE. ONE OF SEVEN RECORDED EXAMPLES OF THE RICKETTS & HALL STAMP, OF WHICH ONLY FOUR HAVE THE NAME AND ADDRESS AROUND THE PERIMETER STILL INTACT. ONE OF THE MOST SOUGHT-AFTER OF AMERICAN LOCAL-POST STAMPS.

Denwood N. Kelly provided an excellent overview of what little is known about Ricketts & Hall in his Collectors Club Philatelist series on Baltimore (Vol. 50, No. 6). Stephen Gronowski updated the census of known examples in The Penny Post (Apr. 1994) and Steven M. Roth included the three recorded covers in his February 1997 Baltimore survey (Chronicle 173). A review of our own records (including the Costales and Sloane notes and P.F. files) produced no additional examples or information, and the following information is drawn from the sources noted.

The stamps and advertisements from The Sun (Feb. 10-11, 1857) give the address of Ricketts & Hall as 4 Rechabite Hall, the location of Cook's Dispatch three years earlier (considered by Kelly to be purely coincidental). Several candidates for the proprietors are found in city directories, but nothing is known that directly links any of them to the post. Kelly speculated that John Ricketts, a printer, and Robert Hall, a tailor, were the best choices, given their proximity to 4 Rechabite Hall. The post started in February 1857 (the year appears on the stamp) and probably did not exist more than a few months. The three recorded 127L1 stamps with the surrounding name and address cut away have led to speculation that the post was sold to a new owner, who removed his predecessor's imprint, this is not an unreasonable theory, but no evidence beyond the stamps has been found to support it. If this occurred, it would have to pre-date the May 15, 1857 cover listed below as number 7, which bears a stamp with the outer circle and label cut away.

The Gronowski census is current with seven recorded examples: 1) cut to shape, pencil cancel, ex Caspary, Middendorf, Gronowski collection, 2) cut to shape, pencil cancel, the stamp offered here, ex Ferrary (?--as reported by Sloane), Needham, Hollowbush, Richardson and Golden (Siegel Sale 817, lot 1459, realized $8,000 hammer), 3) outer circle with name and address cut away, uncancelled, ex Burrus, 4) outer circle with name and address cut away, tied by Baltimore blue datestamp (date?) on piece with 3c 1851, 1991 Park Cities net price sale, 5) cut to shape, uncancelled, used on back of Justice of the Peace corner card cover to George C. Whiting, Comm. of Pensions, Washington D.C., 3c 1851 tied by Baltimore Feb. 17, 1857 datestamp on front of cover, ex Lilly, Boker, 6) the only cut square stamp, pencil cancel, used on cover to Master Hammie Kiplinger, local address, Valentine enclosure, illustrated in Kelly article, whereabouts unknown, and 7) outer circle with name and address cut away, uncancelled, used on front only, 3c Red Nesbitt embossed stamp, Baltimore May 15, 1857 datestamp, to George N. Forney, Hanover Pa., discovered in 1909, ex Hollowbush, Lowe. Therefore, there are only four 127L1's with the outer label intact, including two covers and two off-cover stamps (cut to shape except for one stamp on cover).

Illustrated in Kelly CCP series (Vol. 50, No. 6, p. 358). Sloane notes this stamp as possibly coming from the Ferrary and Needham collections. Ex Hollowbush, Richardson and Golden. With 1999 P.F. certificate. Scott Retail $9,000.00 (Image)