The History of Stamp Collecting - Part III


This post continues and completes our series on the history of stamp collecting.

The 20th century saw a steady increase in the popularity of stamp collecting, with the number of stamps that were available for collecting positively exploding.  Many of the stamps from the 1910s-1940s are not rare, but they are nonetheless fine examples of design and engraving. 

Although the period between 1840 and 1940 is often called the "Classic Era" of stamps, the period right around 1940 probably represents the peak of the so-called "Golden Age" of stamp collecting, at least in the US.  Franklin D. Roosevelt, an avid stamp collector himself, was President and stamp collecting garnered publicity and prestige through him.  During this period almost every young boy (and many young girls) collected stamps.  They spent many an hour every week happily trading stamps and otherwise working on their stamp collections.  Philatelic periodicals and stamp shops were plentiful, and even ordinary department stores all had stamp departments stocked with stamps and stamp supplies.  I well remember the Gimbels store stamp department and how going there was the highlight of every weekend.

The periods immediately before and after World War II gave birth to a variety of interesting philatelic items - everything from Weimar inflation stamps through Hitler head stamps to stamps from behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War.  Some countries that formerly issued stamps went away and became so-called dead countries, while other countries, such as East Germany, sprung up.  The British Empire was seeing its final days but stamps from exotic British colonies were still of very high quality, and seeing them let us have a glimpse of life in those exotic places.

After the war, new stamp printing technologies were developed.  Stamp issuing countries began to realize that they could garner significant income by marketing their stamps directly to collectors.  Collecting mint never hinged stamps became the rage.  Some countries (and pseudo-countries) issued stamps solely for the purpose of selling them to collectors, with no intent to ever be used on the mail.  The number of stamps issued throughout the world hugely increased, with the result that building a comprehensive worldwide collection is now very difficult if not impossible - there are just too many stamps being issued.

Even though the US now produces more than 100 new stamps every year, in today's era we see post offices printing postage labels to be affixed to mail.  Post offices should be selling stamps at the counter for use on the mail, and in truth they do, but they'd rather just print those labels and sell stamps to a few die-hard users and collectors.  But that's not the only strike against the future fate of stamps:  postage also can be printed using peoples' home computers and printers.  

Are stamps becoming irrelevant to the mail?  Perhaps so.  In the future it may well be that the only stamps sold are sold to collectors.  A dire prediction and a bleak thought, because that will likely bring the hobby to a crashing end.  

How to avoid this?  Buy stamps, but use them on your mail in addition to adding them to your collection.  And don't just buy self-adhesive definitive stamps, either - buy some commemorative stamps.  Don't let the post office put those postage labels that they print out onto your mail.  Use stamps whenever possible.  That's the best way to ensure the hobby continues.

A Primer on the History of Stamp Collecting - Part II


As we mentioned yesterday, stamps were one of the main causes of the American Revolution.  Great Britain's Stamp Act of 1765 imposed a tax on the population of the American British colonies without any input from the colonists.  This tax led to one of the most famous rallying cries of the colonists and one of the founding principles of the USA:  "No taxation without representation."  But those types of stamps are different than the postage stamps that most people collect today.

The first government-issued postage stamps were issued by Great Britain in 1840, and they were a hit right from the beginning.  Although many private and local post stamps had been issued by then, Britain's Penny Black and Penny Blue were the first "official" stamps printed by a national postal authority.  Sir Rowland Hill came up with the idea as a means to prepay postage at the expense of the mailer instead of charging the recipient on delivery, but an additional benefit was a standardized rate for all mail carried throughout the country.  His idea caught on quickly and spread throughout the world, with the United States issuing its first postage stamp in 1847. 

Stamp collecting also became popular very quickly, and the wares of stamp dealers began to be in demand.  By the end of the 19th century stamp albums, along with stamp collecting tools such as stamp tongs, stamp hinges, magnifiers and stamp catalogs had come into common use.  Around this same time, at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, some of the world's most important stamp sets were issued.  Classic US stamps falling into this category include the Columbian set of 1892, issued in connection with Chicago's Columbian Exposition - the World's Fair that celebrated the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America. Prized for their beautiful engraving and designs, the Columbians were also the first (technically, anyway) commemorative stamps issued by the US.  Other important US stamp sets from this period include the Trans-Mississippi Exposition set and the Pan-American Exposition set.  Far more (in my opinion) than the coveted (and in my opinion highly overpriced) Graf Zeppelin set, when taken together, the Columbians, the Trans-Mississippis and the Pan-Americans represent the pinnacle of US stamps, and I do not believe their quality and beauty will ever be surpassed.

The Universal Postal Union, created in the late 19th century, also significantly impacted stamp collecting.  We'll discuss the UPU more in a couple of days, but for now suffice it to say that the UPU imposed standardized stamp colors for international mail, causing a plethora of new stamps to be issued in order to comply.

Tomorrow we'll add the final post in this short series on the history of stamp collecting.

A Primer on the History of Stamp Collecting - Part I


Stamp collecting has a long and rich history, and few hobbies have enjoyed such enduring popularity.  Although stamp collecting is sometimes called the "hobby of kings," you don't have to be rich to enjoy it.  Many people of somewhat limited means have built beautiful, and above all, rewarding stamp collections.  

Collecting stamps can be the hobby of a lifetime, but if you're anything like me, the more you know about its history, the more you'll enjoy it.  The fact that many famous and important people have been dedicated stamp collectors has probably added much to its appeal.  Kings, queens, United States Presidents, corporate CEOS and people in just about every other profession you can think of have been stamp collectors, and you can share their passion for philately.

Most people collect postage stamps and those types of stamp collections could not exist before 1840, when the world's first government-issued postage stamp - Great Britain's Penny Black - was issued.  However, stamps of other types could be collected before 1840, including collecting tax stamps, revenue stamps, seals and more.  No one knows how many people collected these other types of stamps before 1840, but mankind's predilection to collect just about anything makes me pretty sure that at least some did.  

The Netherlands issued the first tax stamp way back in 1624.  They soon came into popular use throughout Europe, including Great Britain, and were used to indicate prepayment of taxes that were levied by those countries' governments.

Did you know that stamps were one of the main causes of the American Revolution?

Stay tuned for more stamp collecting history tomorrow.