Have you ever considered collecting Precancels? Most collectors have developed the opinion that "precancels" are inferior to normal issue stamps, and therefore aren't interested in them. This opinion can prevent you from having a lot of fun and meeting a lot of nice and very knowledgeable collectors.
About twenty years ago, I developed an interest in precancels because of a couple of articles that had read about them. I was amazed to find that many of the precancel collectors that I met had been collectors of other types of stamps and got bored with their normal collections and started collecting precancels. U.S. precancels are categorized as Bureau and Local precancels. The Bureau precancels were produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington, DC. Local precancels were produced by individual post offices in both large and small towns throughout the United States. Precancels were used to eliminate the need to cancel items which were mailed in large quantities. By using a precanceled stamp, the post office saved a lot of time for large mailings. In the early 1900's and later, these mailings were produced by grocery stores for their advertisments, state and local government mailings, etc. The number of precancels that can be collected is in the thousands. So you can build a large collection. Many of the precancels cost less than a dollar each and can appear on many different U.S. issues. If you would like to know more about precancels and precancel collecting, please visit the Precancel Stamp Society web site. The Precancel Stamp Society holds various meetings during the year. These can be found on the web site. They are very interesting meetings where collectors socialize and buy, sell, and trade precancels. These meetings are much more social and very enjoyable. So, if you have ever been the slightest bit interested in precancels, visit the site and make an effort to attend one of their meetings near you. If you have questions about precancels or have some to trade or sell, please contact me at curtstamp@aol.com. Have a good day and I hope you will find the aspect of collecting precancels of interest.
About twenty years ago, I developed an interest in precancels because of a couple of articles that had read about them. I was amazed to find that many of the precancel collectors that I met had been collectors of other types of stamps and got bored with their normal collections and started collecting precancels. U.S. precancels are categorized as Bureau and Local precancels. The Bureau precancels were produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington, DC. Local precancels were produced by individual post offices in both large and small towns throughout the United States. Precancels were used to eliminate the need to cancel items which were mailed in large quantities. By using a precanceled stamp, the post office saved a lot of time for large mailings. In the early 1900's and later, these mailings were produced by grocery stores for their advertisments, state and local government mailings, etc. The number of precancels that can be collected is in the thousands. So you can build a large collection. Many of the precancels cost less than a dollar each and can appear on many different U.S. issues. If you would like to know more about precancels and precancel collecting, please visit the Precancel Stamp Society web site. The Precancel Stamp Society holds various meetings during the year. These can be found on the web site. They are very interesting meetings where collectors socialize and buy, sell, and trade precancels. These meetings are much more social and very enjoyable. So, if you have ever been the slightest bit interested in precancels, visit the site and make an effort to attend one of their meetings near you. If you have questions about precancels or have some to trade or sell, please contact me at curtstamp@aol.com. Have a good day and I hope you will find the aspect of collecting precancels of interest.
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