Funding the Spanish-American War
Between April and August 1898, the U.S. and Spain fought a war that Spain lost and that resulted in the U.S. taking over Cuba, Puerto...
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New York Postmaster Provisional Covers, 1845-46
In March 1845, the U.S. Congress passed a law establishing new uniform rates of postage: 5-cents for a single sheet letter or a letter...
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"My Darling Leila": A Confederate Civil War Cover from 1863
The Confederate States of America (CSA) was formed by seven seceding states on February 8, 1861. Four more states joined the CSA after...
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Chickering & Sons Pianos, 1859
This cover (Figure 1) was postmarked in Conway, New Hampshire on August 15, 1859, and was addressed to Colonel Thomas E. Chickering of...
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A Trio of Mini-Covers from the 19th Century
Today, the smallest postcard or envelope that you can mail through the US Postal Service has to measure at least 5 inches long and 3-1/2...
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The Royal E. House Collection
Early in 2023, I purchased at auction a box full of covers. I don't know the exact number, but it was certainly more than a couple of...
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“Our Dear Ella”: A Civil War Soldier's Letter from 1863
This is a Civil War-era cover that includes the original letter from a Union solider to his wife. The cover (Figures 1 and 2) has a...
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A Civil War Patriotic Cover from 1862 Addressed to a Future Wisconsin US Senator
Many covers with patriotic themes were produced during the Civil War, especially in the North that had the supplies and the industrial...
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The Inventor of the Clay Pigeon, 1887
I acquired this cover (Figure 3) at an auction because of the advertisement. It's a very bold one, depicting an allegoric figure...
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A Mystery Item Postmarked Rome, California Circa 1870s
This item, which is just a piece of an envelope or wrapper with a stamp on it, is largely a mystery to me. It was postmarked at the Rome,...
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Registered Mail from 1873
Beginning in 1855, the Post Office provided a registry service to more securely move high-value matter through the mail system....
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An Early Usage of a Stamped Envelope Circa 1854
This envelope was probably mailed sometime around 1854, and unless the sender made a mistake in calculating the amount of postage needed,...
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A Cover Sent from New Orleans to Germany, 1868
The Universal Postal Union (UPU), which was organized in 1874 and today is a specialized agency within the Union Nations, coordinates...
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A Letter to the Founder of Rockford University, 1860
This plain looking cover was postmarked September 5, probably in 1860 based on the notation to the left, in Chicago. It then made its way...
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A "Blood's Dispatch" Item from Philadelphia Circa 1850
This cover is likely from the early 1850s. I assume that is the case because this envelope has two stamps that help narrow the timeframe....
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Sheriff, Former Farmer, Dies of Pistol Shot Wound! News at 11!
This cover from 1894 is beat up, but it has a neat train car-themed ad and a recipient who died of a pistol shot! It was mailed from...
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A Famous and Not-So-Famous Drug Company from 1894
These two covers were sent from Baltimore, Maryland to the same address in Lowell, Massachusetts - "J.C. Ayer Co." - just one week apart...
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An Attractive Columbian Cover from 1896
This is a nice cover to highlight even though I have no clue who sent it. The cover has 2-cents worth of postage, which was the letter...
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Is It "Soda" or Is It "Pop"? A Milwaukee ("Soda") to Iowa ("Pop") Business Cover from 1893
On January 1, 1893, the US Postal Service released its first-ever commemorative stamps, i.e., stamps issued to celebrate a specific event...
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"Historian and Hobbiest" and the Independent Order of Good Templars, 1895
This advertising cover was sent from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Greene, Maine sometime in the spring of 1895. In Figure 1, you can just make...
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