What is Ohio Postal History? Ohio postal history collectors enthusiastically seek letters, envelopes and covers ranging from stampless territorial letters, mailed over 200 years ago, to today s junk mail. Within that broad range, individual collectors often focus on more narrow topics centering on a town, city, or county, a particular time period, a particular type of cancel or special service, or covers related to a given topic. Examples of each of these, as well as others, are found on these pages. The Ohio Postal History Society was founded in 1957 to serve collectors of all these areas. Currently, the society has over 300 members who receive benefits of a quarterly journal, occasional monographs (printed studies) of a special aspect of Ohio postal history, and enjoy fellowship and networking with other collectors. For more information on the Ohio Postal History Society, write OPHS Secretary, P.O. Box 690042, Houston TX 77269.
Northwest Territory Covers Ohio postal history begins with folded letters from the days when present-day Ohio was part of the Northwest Territory. Organized in 1787, the Northwest Territory included land that now forms the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin as well as parts of present day Minnesota. At the time of statehood in 1803, there were only 14 post offices in Ohio. Most of these, including Cincinnati, Gallopolis, and Marietta, were on or near the Ohio River or its tributaries. Northwest Territorial covers from towns or cities now in Ohio are scarce to rare and usually worth several hundred dollars or more. The folded letter illustrated above was sent from Marietta to New Hampshire in 1799. The 25 cent rate applied to single page letters sent over 500 miles and was paid by the recipient upon receipt.
Stampless Covers Stampless folded letters, usually referred to as stampless covers, are one of the most popularly collected areas of Ohio postal history. The post office where the letter was mailed was shown on the outside of the letter either by an inked handstamp or by a handwritten (or manuscript) marking. The stampless era lasted until the late 1850 s and differed from today s mails in several key ways. Unlike the present system, letter writers of the first half of the 19 th century could send their mail either prepaid or collect. Collect mail was held at the receiving post office until the recipient paid the postage charges. The postage rate itself was based on the distance the letter traveled and the number of sheets of paper used, not a uniform rate as it is today. Finally, there was no home delivery. People had to go to the post office to pick up all their mail, even if it had been prepaid. This, together with a transportation system based on walking or horse drawn carts, led to post offices being located in stores, mills, taverns, and even homes every few miles. 1843 letter with a Columbus handstamp town marking and the 10 cent rate prepaid and an 1849 cover with a manuscript Jelloway (Knox County) marking with the 10 cent rate collected upon receipt.
First Postage Stamps The first postage stamps issued by the United States were available beginning July 1, 1847. While letters could still be sent collect, the stamps were used for prepaid letters. Initial use of the stamps was primarily restricted to the larger post offices and the denominations (5 cent and 10 cent) reflected a rate change that took effect in 1845. This change eliminated several of the distance classifications and lowered postage to 5 cents for up to 300 miles and 10 cents for over 300. The rate structure was again changed in 1851 when the cost of mailing a single letter within most of the country was reduced to three cents, though mail to and from the West Coast remained at ten cents. The option of mailing collect was eliminated in 1855. November 20, 1850 folded letter from Fredericktown to Bucyrus with an example of the first stamp issued by the United States.
The Civil War The Civil War brought changes to all areas of American life, and the postal system was no exception. While the practice of sending mail collect had been discontinued in 1855, it was reinstated for soldiers serving in the war. The envelope had to be inscribed Soldier s Letter and its origin attested to by the writer s commanding officer. Another interesting facet of Civil War postal history is the use of patriotic designs or illustrations on envelopes. Called patriotic covers by collectors, these were used by citizens on both sides of the conflict to express their political views. Many collectors actively seek examples of the hundreds of designs of patriotic covers that exist. June, 1862 cover from Oberlin to England with patriotic design.
Fancy Cancels The Banknote era, named because most United States stamps were printed by either the National or the American Banknote Companies, was roughly from 1870 to 1900. By this time, the manuscript method of postmarking envelopes and canceling stamps had largely been replaced by dated handstamps. Some of the canceling devices had fancy geometric designs or, occasionally, the postmaster used a hand carved canceling device that created a simple picture of an animal or common object. These are called fancy cancels by collectors and are eagerly sought. Fancy negative star from Kalida and pinwheel from Salem used on banknote stamps and covers from the 1880 s
Rural Free Delivery Home delivery of mail began in Cleveland and a few other cities in 1863 and spread to over 400 other towns and cities by 1900. Home delivery in rural areas, called Rural Free Delivery (or RFD), began in 1896 in Jefferson County, West Virginia. The first Ohio RFD routes were established that same year. Because placing a letter into the mail stream often meant a walk or buggy ride of an hour or more, the postal carriers not only delivered mail but collected it as well. The carrier often postmarked the collected mail with a special RFD cancel or in manuscript, particularly if the recipient was further along the route. This allowed the item to be delivered without returning it to the post office. These RFD markings, both handstamp and manuscript, are another specialty collected by members within the Ohio Postal History Society. Manuscript RFD marking from Mt. Vernon and handstamp from Toledo.
Discontinued Post Offices (DPOs) As noted in the description of stampless covers, when people had to pick up their mail, there was a need for a post office every few miles or within easy travel distance. With the advent of Rural Free Delivery, this need was greatly reduced. Consequently, a large number of small volume rural offices were quickly closed. Ohio went from 3,376 post offices in 1900 to 1,928 in 1910, a loss of 43% of the operating offices in just 10 years. Examples of Discontinued (or Dead ) Post Offices (DPO s) are eagerly sought, especially by collectors of particular counties or geographic areas. An 1885 cover from Democracy, Ohio. The Democracy post office was located in Amity (Knox County) and was open from 1834 to 1923.
Advertising Covers The patriotic covers used during the Civil War are one type of illustrated cover. By far the largest number of illustrated covers were those used for advertising. Long before radio, television, and highway billboards, advertising envelopes were a cost-effective way of making a product or service known. Some collectors look for covers showing a certain topic (for example medicine or farm implements) while others seek covers from a particular area. Elaborate, multicolor designs are especially desirable.
Machine Cancels As cities grew, the volume of mail handled by many of the larger post offices increased dramatically. Using a handstamp on each envelope became more and more inefficient as this volume grew. Like many other aspects of life at the turn of the century, machines soon appeared to replace this laborious, manual process. Most machine cancels had a distinctive style of marking the envelope and stamp. Postal history researchers have identified and classified these machines and published a large quantity of data on the manufacturers and dates of use. Some collectors of postal history collect usages from one or more manufacturers. Others try to find examples from each machine used in a particular town. Flag machine cancels, primarily produced by the American Postal Machine Co., are perhaps the most popularly studied and collected machine cancel. This example, from a substation of the Akron post office, was used in 1918. Flag cancel machines were used from 1894 to 1941. Canton was the first post office in Ohio to use this style of machine beginning in 1895. Over the next 44 years, 134 towns employed American flag machines with at least 277 varieties of the cancel. The last flag cancel machine in Ohio was shut down in 1939 in Sherwood (Defiance County).
Railroad Post Offices (RPOs) From the middle of the 19 th century to the middle of the 20 th, railroads represented the principle mode of moving people and goods around and across the country. The railroads also played an unsurpassed role in moving the mail. As the primary transportation method, the rails came to symbolize dreams of far away places and inspire individuals to collect railroad memorabilia and model trains. The railroads have left their mark on postal history collectors as well; railroad postmarks are a popular branch of postal history. Such postmarks were usually applied to letters in special mail cars that not only carried the mail from town to town (or state to state), but were staffed with mail clerks that sorted the mail en route. These clerks also postmarked the envelopes with handstamps showing the name of the railroad or rail route. An 1885 cover postmarked on the Columbus and Middleport section of the Toledo and Ohio Central Railroad. This RPO operated from 1883 to 1900 between Columbus and Middleport with stops as shown on the map at left.
Airmail and First Flight Covers The decline in use of trains for personal travel, and for moving the mail, corresponded with the raise in the use of airplanes and a demand for quicker communication. The first regular use of airplanes for transporting mail was in 1918 when a route was established between Washington and New York. By the 1930 s airmail service was rather common for domestic first class mail though it required an extra fee until 1975. Collecting first flight covers is another popular branch of postal history. This cover was carried on the first airmail flight on the Cleveland to Louisville route on August 1, 1928. The flight made several stops en route at which time mail was added or unloaded. This cover was put onboard in Columbus.
Special Services and the Mail Examples of other special services offered by the postal system, and the special markings and stamps required, are also of keen interest to collectors of Ohio postal history. Unusual registered cover from Mt. Gilead dated January 16, 1915 to Pennsylvania. The addressee could not be found and, with no forwarding address available, the envelope was returned to the sender. Special delivery cover from Gambier to Columbus. This cover was mailed at 1PM on December 4, 1909 and arrived in Columbus one hour later.
Meters, Permits, and Precancels Somewhat less popular than other types of covers, meters, permits, and precancels have a place in state or local postal history collections nonetheless.
First Day Covers When a stamp is initially placed on sale to the public, a First Day ceremony is generally held at a post office connected to the subject of the stamp. Over the years, Ohio has been host to dozens of First Days. These are commemorated by First Day covers. The attractiveness, and collectability, of these covers is usually enhanced by an illustration, known to collectors as a cachet (pronounced ka-shay ).
Special Event Covers and Cancellations Like first day covers, many other events have had special covers created as souvenirs for the collecting community. Like first days, these covers may have a special cancel, a special cachet, or both. Examples include airport or new post office dedication covers, stamp show covers, covers of the last day of operation for discontinued post offices, and covers that merely make use of an interesting town or post office name.