FEBRUARY 2004 Whole No. 158 Vol. 32, No. 1
PENNSYLVANIA POSTAL HISTORIAN
THE BULLETIN OF THE PENNSYLVANIA POSTAL HISTORY SOCIETY
Inside this issue:
The Ordinance of 1856 and the Renumbering of Philadelphia Street Addresses
CAMERON COUNTY – LAND OF THE SINNEMAHONING Part 3, Discontinued Post Offices on Portage Creek and on Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning
Baltimore Freight Money Letter Returned to Philadelphia as a Private Ship Letter
Stampless Covers from Linwood or Linwood Station?
Remailed Postcard Engenders New EKU for Collingdale, Pa. Doane
PENNSYLVANIA POSTAL HISTORIAN
The Bulletin of the Pennsylvania Postal History Society
ISSN – 0894 – 0169 Est. 1974
PENNSYLVANIA POSTAL HISTORIAN The bulletin of the Pennsylvania Postal History Society Published quarterly by the PPHS for its members Volume 32 No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 APS Affiliate No. 50 Member of the Pennsylvania Federation of Museums and Historical Organizations
www.PaPHS.org
The PPHS is a non-profit , educational organization whose purposes are to cultivate and to promote the study of the postal history of Pennsylvania, to encourage the acquisition and preservation of material relevant and necessary to that study, and to publish and to support the publication of such knowledge for the benefit of the public. The views expressed by contributors are their own and not necessarily those of the PPHS, its Directors, Officers, or Members. Comments and criticisms are invited. Please direct your correspondence to the Editor.
OFFICERS and DIRECTORS APPOINTED OFFICERS
OFFICERS
President Richard Leiby, Jr. Historian Editor Norman Shachat 1774 Creek View Dr. 382 Tall Meadow Lane Fogelsville, PA 18051 Yardley, Pa 19067
Secretary Norman Shachat Auctioneer Robert McKain 382 Tall Meadow Lane 2337 Giant Oaks Drive Yardley, PA 19067 Pittsburgh, PA 15241
Treasurer Richard Colberg Publicity Donald W. Smith P. O. Box 10082 PO Box 576 Lancaster, PA 17605 Johnstown, PA 15902
Catalogs Thomas C. Mazza DIRECTORS 1301 Ave. of the Americas Room 2300 2004 N. Shachat, G. Spector, S. Washburne New York, N. Y. 10019-6092 2005 R. Colberg, R. Leiby, D. Telep 2006 R. McKain, S. Roth, C. Woodward
1 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004
PRESIDENT’S LETTER Even though it’s a little late, a Happy New Year to everyone. 2004 looks to be another good year for our Society. Our financial condition is good, and we have had over 100 members who have paid their dues before the first of the year. We can look forward to another year with good shows and the chance to renew old acquaintances. This coming year we would like to compete with other state societies at ROPEX and PNSE, and hope to show PA material at their annual meeting venues. We’ll need your help to accomplish that. I’ll try and get the preaching done early. If you were one of those other members who set your dues notice aside, consider this your reminder. Put the proverbial check in the mail! Help us to avoid sending the annual procrastinator’s letter we have had to send to finalize the dues collection in years past. So far this winter has really given us everything. Three snow storms before Christmas, then mild weather after Christmas. Hopefully, it will settle down to being winter and give us lots of time with our covers and auction catalogs. May this year bring you the cover that you’ve been hunting. As you spend this time, don’t forget to write something up for the Historian. And think about exhibiting at ROPEX and creating that single frame exhibit for PNSE. No, don’t think about it, write it up! When you receive this, our editor, Norm, will be recovering from eye surgery. Please join me in wishing him a speedy recovery. I know he made sure that this issue was “put to bed” before hand, rather than risk its being delayed. This looks to be another great issue. Now if the kids will go to bed, if Marilyn will let me put off doing my chores, and the phone doesn’t ring, then let old man winter do his thing and I’m going to enjoy the issue.
Ri
For Details on: PPHS Mid-Year Meeting at Lancopex 2004 see Page 31,
Ropex 2004 State Society Exhibit Competition see Page 16,
Annual PPHS Meeting and State Society Exhibit Competition at PNSE 2004 see Editor’s Comments on Next Page.
Check Out Our Fabulous Web Site
www.PaPHS.org For input, questions, or comments contact our webmaster Steve Roth at: [email protected]
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 2
EDITOR’S COMMENTS As indicated on the previous page, state society exhibit competitions this year have been scheduled at ROPEX (p. 16) and PNSE. I am coordinating the competition at PNSE at which we will be holding our annual meeting. The show will again be at the Valley Forge Convention Center, King of Pussia, PA, and the dates are Oct. 1 – 3 (our meeting will be on Sat. Oct. 2). Both NJ and NY have indicated they will participate. Each state society will have up to six 1-frame exhibits, each by a different member of their society. The 1-frame exhibits will not be judged individually, but the entire state exhibit will be judged in competition with the other two. For PA, I would like to encourage new exhibitors and will give them preference. One frame is only 16 pages, so I urge you to consider constructing a one-frame exhibit in your PA area of interest. If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact me. I will be submitting the application for all six frames, so individuals who wish to participate need only to let me know; individual applications to PNSE will not be necessary. My thanks to those who contributed to this issue, which you may notice is a little thicker than usual (36 vs normal 32 pages). Also, please take note of our new full page advertiser, Nutmeg Stamp Sales, on the inside back cover. I too wish you all a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous 2004. Hope to see you at our mid- year meeting at LANCOPEX 2004 on April 24 (p. 31), and if not then, at our annual meeting at PNSE 2004 on Oct. 2.
N
MEMBERSHIP SUMMARY
Total Membership as of 10/15/03 ------129
New Member ------+1
# 546 Raymond George Hahn (Youngstown, OH) (Small PA towns, postmarks on small letters)
Reinstated ------+1
# 510 Charles R. Gray (Murrysville, PA) (Cambria County)
Resignations ------3
# 405 James Mehrer # 448 Thomas Kurtz # 483 James Fahs
Total Membership as of 1/15/04 ------128 (106 paid, 4 life, 18 unpaid)
3 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004
Pennsylvania Post Office Challenge By Bill Schultz (# 6)
Life member Bill Schultz has again provided a challenge to the membership with a prize of $10 to the winner. In order to give all members a chance to compete, all correct answers received by March 31, 2004 will be eligible for a drawing to select the winner. Send your answers to Historian editor by mail or E-mail. Good luck and have fun! Clues are as follows: a) Located in “Waynes’ World” b) Opened before the Civil War c) First postmaster reminds one of the Amish d) Post office is still active with a zip code which terminates with a “5” e) Located east of Bellefonte, PA
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 4 Member E-Mail Addresses
George Ashman [email protected] (Carbon Co.) John Barwis [email protected] (Phila. Exhange Office Mails) Gordon Baker [email protected] (Fayette Co.) Chip Blumberg [email protected] (Montgomery Co., Dealer) Glen Blauch [email protected] (Lebanon Co.) Jim Boyles [email protected] (Lancaster City and County) Mike Burke [email protected] (Braddock, Greencasle, Rankin, Swissvale) Tom Clarke [email protected] (Philadelphia Postal History) Richard Colberg [email protected] (Litiz) Joe Crosby [email protected] (Pa. Fancy Cancels) Gerald Cross [email protected] (Wilkes-Barre) George Danyliw [email protected] (Phila. and Schuylkill Co.) Barry Elkins [email protected] (Philadelphia Co.) Helen Galatan-Stone [email protected] (Phila. Buildings prior to 1900) Ken Hall [email protected] (Pa. Manuscript Postmarks) Gerald Hof [email protected] (Philadelphia, Hagerstown, Md.) Peter Hubicki [email protected] (Columbia, Montour, Northumberland Co.) Van Koppersmith [email protected] (Phila. Maritime Markings) Robert Kroupa [email protected] (Chester County, DPO’s) Rick Leiby [email protected] (Pa. Stampless) Tom Mazza [email protected] (Erie, Western Pa.) Bob McKain [email protected] (Pittsburgh, Pa. Machines) Jim Mehrer [email protected] (Dealer: Mail Bid Sales, Lit. and Supplies) Gordon Morrison [email protected] (Bradford County) Clay Olson [email protected] (Tioga County) Joseph Palombit [email protected] (Montgomery, Chester, & Delaware Counties) Steven Roth [email protected] (Domestic Maritime, Prexies) Robert G. Rufe [email protected] (Bucks County) Bill Schultz [email protected] (West Chester,West Whiteland & West Town) Norm Shachat [email protected] (Phila. and Bucks Co.) Dave Silcox [email protected] (Schuylkill and Berks Co.) Don W. Smith [email protected] (Johnstown, Cambria County) Gus Spector [email protected] (Phila., Buildings, Civil War ) Anita Sprankle [email protected] (North Central DPO’s, Sewing Machines) Gordon Trotter [email protected] (Nathan Trotter & Co. Correspondence) Dan Telep [email protected] (Pittsburgh, Sewickley, Western Pa.) Steve Washburne [email protected] (Philadelphia, Monmouth Co., N. J.) Cliff Woodward [email protected] (Western Pa., Oil Towns)
PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS LISTED HERE.
INDICATE YOUR PA COLLECTING INTEREST.
5 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 The Ordinance of 1856 and the Renumbering of Philadelphia Street Addresses
By Ron Summers © 2004 (# 538)
Look at the covers in Figure 1. Same corner card but different addresses. The company must have moved, right? Wrong! The business stayed put but its address changed!
Figure 1
Corner cards from Moore, Henszey & Co., wholesale dealers in hardware. (A) U9, red, entire, May 11, circa 1854 (confirmed in an 1854 city directory), addressed to Westmoreland County, PA. The sender’s address is shown as 181 Market and 16 Commerce Streets, Philada. The Commerce Street address indicates the rear entrance to the property. (B) Scott #26 on brown cover, October 11, 1859 (date confirmed by October 10, 1859 enclosure). The sender’s address has changed to 427 Market and 416 Commerce Streets, Philadelphia. Image enhanced to lighten brown background.
I discovered this fascinating idiosyncrasy while in the process of preparing an exhibit of 19th century Philadelphia illustrated covers. My exhibit depicts covers from as many businesses as I could find on a series of blocks on Market and Chestnut Streets. In the late 1850’s, Philadelphia’s government decided to renumber the addresses in the entire city. This made my task more challenging, since I couldn’t use the return address alone to determine on which block a business was located. I needed a map relating the old addresses to the new ones. As I investigated further, I learned that a definitive map did not exist.
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 6 This article summarizes my research into the address changes, provides a definitive listing of address changes for a portion of Market Street, and describes relevant resources for postal historians interested in further pursuing this topic. The Situation Before 1856 In 1790, Clement Biddle devised a numbering system for Philadelphia properties, with even numbers on the south and west sides of streets and odd numbers on the north and east sides. The system used consecutive numbering that made no reference to cross-streets (1). So, for example, the property at the northeast corner of Market Street at 3rd was 115 Market, the property across 3rd was unnumbered (probably referred to as “the northwest corner of 3rd and Market”) and the next adjacent property was 121 Market (Figure 2A). In most cases, it wasn’t easy for a customer of the time to know where an establishment was located without consulting a directory. Rarely, a cover comes to the aid of a postal historian (Figure 3). In this example, the cover informs us that 237 Market was actually located “above” (west of) 6th Street. Figure 2
Property addresses on the north side of the corner of 3rd and Market Streets, (A) circa 1850 (adapted from Ref. 2) and (B) in 1860. West is at left. In (A), the addresses increased without reference to the Figure 2A cross streets and a corner property was unnumbered, probably referred to as “the NW corner of 3rd and Market”. In (B), addressing started with 301, to indicate these businesses were west of 3rd Street.
Figure 2B
The addresses could be quite confusing. Here’s a stretch of addresses on the south side of Market Street, between 2nd and 3rd Streets, beginning partway up the block: 60, 62, 65 !?, 68, 70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 74 !!, 76, 78, 80 (2). Bizarrely, there’s an odd numbered address, missing addresses (64 and 66) and repetitions (74, 76, and 78). It’s possible that the odd numbered address is an error, because it is blurry on the 1850 map.
7 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004
Figure 3 Scott #11 (brownish claret versus yellow brown shade), Feb. 3, circa 1857 (confirmed in an 1857 city directory), on cameo cover from Benjamin S. Janney Jr & Co. Wholesale Grocers & Commission Merchants, 237 Market St above 6th. The renumbered address would be 605 Market Street, which was confirmed in an 1861 city directory. Inset: Magnified, enhanced image of cameo.
The Council Comes Up with a Solution The Ordinance of 1856, approved September 16 of that year, was meant to clear up this confusion. Effective in 1857, a new system was devised by Thomas Marsh in which the odd (East and North) - even (South and West) designations were retained. Marsh’s innovation was to renumber the addresses to increment by 100 at each block (Figure 2B) (1). The Select and Common Councils of the City of Philadelphia assigned the Chief Commissioner of Highways the duty “to effect uniformity in numbering houses.” Within six months, the Commissioner was to “furnish each owner or occupant … the correct number to which such house is entitled.” The Ordinance included a diagram for the new numbering plan, starting at Market Street and the Delaware River, “allowing one hundred numbers to each square of 350 or more feet in length, and commencing with an even hundred at … each square … and in all respects adhering to the decimal system of numeration.” Marsh, a builder and a member of the Common Council, knew what he was doing – this numbering system exists to this day, and has been copied extensively by other cities (1). Of note, there was a penalty for noncompliance. Anyone who failed to renumber their property within sixty days was assessed a five dollar fine (about $100 in today’s currency allowing for inflation (3)). This assured timely and complete compliance. Since this renumbering affected the entire city, you would think some detailed records of the conversion would be available. Queries to a number of sources, however, revealed a surprising lack of detail about the mapping from old to new addresses. Resources for Postal Historians There are a number of resources available to historians who wish to trace the changes. As you will see, none of them are foolproof.
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 8 My first attempt was to look at a business directory from 1857 (4). Many of the businesses reported both their old and new addresses. Unfortunately, relatively few addresses on Market and Chestnut Streets, my main streets of interest, were provided. In addition, some businesses moved from one address to another on the same street during the one year between the address change and the date of the directory. The directory listed both addresses but it was not always evident that the addresses represented a different physical location. One can pursue this approach further by matching businesses in 1857 and 1858 city directories, but this would prove quite laborious when researching more than a few addresses and the problem would remain of identifying businesses that moved. Better yet, Figure 4 shows a cover from 1858 that shows both addresses. This occurs rarely.
Figure 4 Scott #26, Sep 14, 1858, on cameo cover from Smith, Murphy & Co. Dry Goods, 237 Market St Below 3rd (formerly 97). Inset: Magnified, enhanced image of cameo.
Additional information could be had from a table in an 1850 business directory (5). The table gives the street addresses located at the corners of each square. Dozens of streets are listed, including the numbered streets from 2nd through 13th. I have reproduced the corner addresses for Market and Chestnut Streets in Table 1. The table helps one localize a property to a particular block but to a particular property only at the corners. The trusty Internet was my next stop. The Philadelphia Architects and Buildings (PAB) website listed historic addresses for many buildings, but only for Chestnut Street (6). Through email correspondence, I learned that this was done by matching Rae’s Panorama of Chestnut Street from 1851 to a later Baxter panorama (7). The panoramas are drawings depicting the buildings on each side of the street, and the address of each building is shown. My next stop was the Franklin and Pennsylvania Fire Insurance Databases (8). These consist of surveys of insured 19th century properties in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Although the street coverage was sporadic, the database was convenient and relatively easy to use. The trick to get “old numbered” street addresses is to enter “ON” in the box labeled “RAW”. This database was occasionally unavailable.
9 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Table 1 A Way is Found to Precisely Match Market Street addresses at the corners of each Street Addresses square, from an 1850 Philadelphia business directory (Ref. 5) I had the greatest success at the Free Library Market Chestnut of Philadelphia. Using street level maps from Front 14 19 00 00 1860 and circa 1850, I was able to do one-to- Second 46 63 43 40 one matching of addresses on Market Street Third 90 117 95 96 spanning Delaware Avenue to 7th Street (2, 9). Fourth 130 157 131 126 Fifth 168 199 167 142 The results of this matching are shown in Table Sixth 196 235 199 136 2. While matching addresses, I observed Seventh 230 271 211 166 several more idiosyncrasies of the pre-1857 Eighth 268 305 235 200 addressing system. The corner properties were Ninth 302 339 279 244 often unnumbered, presumably referred to as Tenth 342 375 303 268 “the northwest corner of 3rd Street”, etc. Some Eleventh 374 403 321 302 Twelfth 418 437 355 326 properties received two numbers after the Thirt’nth 458 477 419 354 renumbering and in some cases two adjacent numbered properties were consolidated into one. There were a number of fractional addresses (always ½). Several properties (not always adjacent) had the same address. There are also some slight discrepancies between Tables 1 and 2 that I think are due to the way corner businesses were addressed. Nevertheless, many address correspondences were confirmed by the fire insurance database and the 1857 business directory. While I have deleted information that is clearly incorrect (likely because the business had moved), I have retained some inconsistent entries to indicate portions of a block where the matching accuracy is uncertain. Using this table, I was able to determine the renumbered address of the cover shown in Figure 5.
Figure 5 Scott #11, Jan 31, on brown cameo cover from Scott, Baker & Co. Importers & Jobbers of Dry Goods, No. 150 Market Street. Since 150 Market doesn’t exist after the renumbering, we know this is an old address (confirmed in an 1854 city directory), corresponding with 424 Market Street. Image enhanced to lighten brown background. Inset: Magnified, enhanced image of cameo.
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 10 I am not the first to correlate addresses of individual properties on Market Street before and after the renumbering. While researching this topic, I found a report from a researcher who traced property ownership in the environs of Independence Hall (10). From this website, one can explore the owners and occupants of dwellings and businesses on the 500 block of Market Street until 1850. Addresses before and after the renumbering are given, allowing one to continue the exploration to later dates. Using these sources, I wish you the best of success in solving your Philadelphia renumbering problems!
Acknowledgment I thank Rich Boardman, Head, Map Collection, Free Library of Philadelphia for his invaluable assistance on this project. References
1. Joseph Jackson, Encyclopedia of Philadelphia, Harrisburg, PA:National Historical Assoc., Volume 3, pp. 775-6, 1932.
2. Philadelphia street map of Market Street and environs, circa 1850, in 14 sections, showing property addresses. Source unknown, possibly an early version of the 1860 Hexamer and Locher maps because of their similarity. Available at the Map Collection, Free Library of Philadelphia.
3. Columbia Journalism Review Dollar Conversion Calculator, http://www.cjr.org/resources/inflater.asp, last accessed June 24, 2003.
4. Twitt’s Directory of Prominent Business Men in Philadelphia, 1857, available from http://yeoldedirectoryshoppe.com/.
5. Bywater’s Philadelphia Business Directory and City Guide for the Year 1850, by John Downes, pp. 171-173. Available at the Map Collection, Free Library of Philadelphia.
6. Philadelphia Architects & Buildings website, http://www.philadelphiabuildings.org/pab/index.cfm, last accessed June 29, 2003.
7. PLACES IN TIME: Historical Documentation of Place in Greater Philadelphia, Bryn Mawr College, http://www.brynmawr.edu/iconog/, last accessed July 16, 2003.
8. Fire Insurance Records Database, PLACES IN TIME: Historical Documentation of Place in Greater Philadelphia, Bryn Mawr College, http://www.brynmawr.edu/iconog/ffi/ffidefault.htm, last accessed July 16, 2003.
9. Hexamer and Locher map of Market Street and environs, Volume 1, 1860. Available at the Map Collection, Free Library of Philadelphia.
10. Sharon Ann Holt, Occupation and Use of the 500 block of Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1680-1850: An Historic Resource Study conducted for Independence National Historical Park, http://www.brynmawr.edu/iconog/inhp/inhp.html, last accessed July 12, 2003.
11 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Table 2 Market Street Addresses before (pre) and after (post) Renumbering, between Delaware Avenue and 7th Street Information sources: H = Hexamer & Locher maps (Refs. 2 and 9) 7 = 1857 business directory (Ref. 4) F = Fire Insurance database (Ref. 8)
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE Pre Post Source Pre Post Source
DELAWARE AVENUE
SW Corner 2 H 6 4 H 8 6 H 10 8 H 10 1/2 10 H 12 12 H
WATER STREET
FRONT STREET
SW Corner 100 H 19 101 H 14 102 H 21 103 H 16 104 H 23 105 H 18 106 H 25 107 H 22 108 H 27 109 H 22 110 H 29 111 H 26 112 H 31 113 H 28 114 H 33 115 H 30 116 H 33 ½ 117 H 32 118 H 35 119 H 34 120 H 35 119 F 32 120 7 39 123 H 36 122 H 41 125 H 36 122 7 43 127 H 38 124 H 45 129 7 40 126 H 45 129 H 42 128 H 47 131 7 44 130 H 47 131 H 46 132 H 49 133 H 48 134 H 51 135 H 48 136 H 53 137 H 50 138 H 55 139 H SE Corner 140 H 57 141 H 59 143 H NE Corner 145 H
SECOND STREET
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 12 Table 2 (cont.)
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE Pre Post Source Pre Post Source
SECOND STREET
SW Corner 200 H NW Corner 201 H 48 202 H 65 203 H 50 204 H 63 203 H 52 206 H 67 205 H 52 208 H 69 207 H 54 210 H 71 209 H 56 212 H 73 211 7 58 214 H 73 211 H 60 216 H 75 213 7 62 218 H 75 213 H 65 220 H 77 215 7 68 222 H 77 215 H 70 224 F 77 1/2 217 H 70 224 H 79 219 H 72 226 H 37 221 H 74 228 H 83 223 H 76 230 H 85 225 H 78 232 H 87 227 H 74 234 H 89 229 H 76 236 H 91 231 H 78 238 H 93 233 H 80 240 H 95 235 H 82 242 H 97 237 H 84 244 H 99 239 H 86 246 H 101 241 H 86 246 7 103 243 H 88 248 H 103 245 H 105 247 7 105 247 H 107 249 H 107 1/2 251 H 109 253 H 111 255 H 113 257 H 113 257 F 115 259 H
THIRD STREET
SW Corner300 H NW Corner 301 H 92 302 H 121 303 H 94 304 H 123 305 7 96 306 F 123 305 H 96 306 H 125 307 H 98 308 H 127 309 H 100 310 H 129 311 H 100 310 F 131 313 H
13 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Table 2 (cont.)
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE Pre Post Source Pre Post Source
THIRD STREET (cont.)
102 312 H 133 315 H 104 314 F 135 317 H 104 314 H 137 319 H 106 316 H 139 321 7 108 318 H 139 321 H 110 320 7 139 1/2 323 H 110 320 H 141 325 7 112 322 H 141 325 H 114 324 H 141 325 7 114 324 7 143 327 H 116 326 H 143 329 H 118 328 H 143 329 7 120 330 H 145 331 H 122 332 H 141 331 7 124 334 H 147 333 H 126 336 H 149 335 H 128 338 H 151 337 7 151 337 H 153 339 H 155 341 H
FOURTH STREET
SW Corner 400 H NW Corner 401 H 132 402 H 159 403 H 134 404 H 161 405 7 134 406 H 161 405 H 136 408 H 163 407 H 138 410 H 165 409 H 140 412 H 165 409 7 140 1/2 414 H 167 411 H 142 416 H 169 413 H 144 418 H 171 415 H 146 420 H 173 417 H 146 420 F 175 419 H 148 422 H 177 421 H 148 422 7 177 423 7 150 424 H 177 1/2 423 H 152 426 H 179 425 H 154 428 H 181 427 H 156 430 H 183 427 F 158 432 H 183 429 H 160 434 H 185 431 H 162 436 H 187 433 H 164 438 H 189 435 H 166 440 H 191 437 H
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 14 Table 2 (cont.)
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE Pre Post Source Pre Post Source
FOURTH STREET (cont.)
168 442 H 195 441 7 195 441 H 197 443 H
FIFTH STREET
SW Corner 500 H NW Corner 501 H 170 502 H 201 501 F 172 504 H 201 503 7 172 506 H 201 503 H 174 508 H 203 503 H 176 510 H 205 505 7 178 512 H 205 505 H 180 514 H 207 507 F 180 514 F 207 507 H 182 516 H 209 509 H 182 516 F 211 511 H 184 518 7 213 513 H 184 518 H 213 1/2 513 H 186 520 H 213 513 7 188 522 H 215 515 H 190 524 H 215 1/2 517 H 192 526 F 217 519 H 192 526 H 219 521 H 194 528 H 221 523 H 194 528 F 223 525 F 194 1/2 530 H 223 525 H 194 1/2 530 7 225 527 H 196 532 H 227 529 H 198 534 H 229 531 H SE Corner 536 H 231 533 H 231 533 7 233 535 H
SIXTH STREET
SW Corner 600 H NW Corner 601 H SW Corner 602 H 235 603 H 200 604 H 237 605 H 200 606 H 239 607 H 200 608 H 241 609 H 204 610 H 243 611 H 204 610 7 245 613 H 206 612 H 245 613 7 208 614 7 247 615 H 208 614 H 249 617 H
15 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Table 2 (cont.)
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE Pre Post Source Pre Post Source
SIXTH STREET (cont.)
210 616 H 251 619 7 210 616 7 251 619 H 212 618 H 253 621 H 214 620 H 253 621 7 216 622 H 255 623 H 218 624 H 257 625 H 220 626 H 259 627 H 222 628 H 261 629 7 224 630 H 261 629 H 226 632 H 263 631 H 228 634 H 265 633 H 267 635 H NE Corner 637 H
SEVENTH STREET ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Rhopex 2004 State Society Exhibit Competition
June 18-20, 2004 at Webster Thomas High School, Webster, N. Y. We have been invited along with NJ , NY, OH and the NE states to participate in an exhibit competition at Ropex, a national show. Rhopex accepts and judges both single-frame and multi-frame exhibits. Each exhibitor must apply individually by filling out the normal prospectus form. All exhibits will be judged in the nomal fashion and awarded medals accordingly. For purposes of the state society competition, a point system has been established to recognize participation, medal level, special show awards, etc. An award will be given to the society that accumulates the most points. Members of our Society are encouraged to show their PA exhibits at Ropex 2004. For a prospectus contact Tom Fortunato, 42 Maynard St., Rochester, N. Y., [email protected] , 585-621-1670, or download a prospectus directly at www.geocities.com/rpastamps/roplex.html PPHS contacts for more information are: Al Parsons at [email protected] Rick Leiby at [email protected] Norm Shachat at [email protected]
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 16 CAMERON COUNTY--LAND OF THE SINNEMAHONING: A Brief Postal History of One of Pennsylvania’s Smaller Counties Part 3, Discontinued Post Offices on Portage Creek and on Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning
By Anita T. Sprankle (# 395) and Lynn R. Sprankle (Part 1 appeared in the August 2003 Historian, pp. 6 –18, Part 2 in the November 2003 Historian, pp. 13 – 18.) Discontinued Portage Creek Post Offices There were five named post offices along Portage Creek north of Emporium from 1865 to 1926–today there are none. The locations of these post offices were the most difficult to find of all those in Cameron County. As is common in many parts of rural northern Pennsylvania, the location of the post office tended to coincide with the residence of the postmaster. If this residence also included a store, as many times was the case, then a community of even very modest size would develop in the vicinity of the store. Such a situation gives the postal historian something on which to focus his attention. When the postmaster was one farmer among others, and, where the post office changed location with the change of postmasters, the task of determining even the general location of a post office, discontinued over a century ago, becomes a difficult proposition. When the post office closes for a few years and then reopens in the same area with a different name, it can play havoc with one’s research. Such appears to have been the case on Portage Creek. The most northern of these discontinued post offices was Shippen Station, established June 16, 1884, and operated until February 10, 1893. The postmasters and their dates of appointment were: Riley W. Hancock June 16, 1884 Mrs. Elna Jones August 4, 1886 Alva L. Ensign April 29, 1892 The application for a post office indicates this was not a village and that the mail would be taken from the train at the rail station, Shippen Station. The local histories fail to mention this area, so certain assumptions need be made in order to go forward. This post office may have been established in anticipation of the logging. Chart 1, Postmaster Compensation, indicates the compensation doubled from 1885 to 1887 and continued at a higher rate until 1891, with postal service being discontinued in 1893. This would be consistent with an extractive industry moving into the area, functioning a few years with the attendant increase in postal activity, and then moving out. As the area to the south was logged between 1880 and 1885, and the area to the north of Shippen Station was logged in the 1890s,25 we are reasonably certain the Shippen Station area was logged from the mid 1880s to the early 1890s, but we can find no direct evidence this is so. North Shippen post office had been established January 12, 1874 and operated until October 5, 1875. The site was very near Shippen Station and obviously served the
17 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004
and had two sawyers living with him, but his occupation was listed as a farmer. Abram Cassel, former postmaster of the Prestonville post office, ran a boarding house full of lumbermen. The 1880 and 1900 Censuses (1890 is unavailable for Pennsylvania) show a significant percentage of the workforce was employed as woodsmen or sawmill workers, but by 1910, this was no longer the case. Portage Township, which includes Sizerville and much of Portage Creek, declined from a population high of 246 in 1900 to 143 in 1910.
Sizerville was also the site of a mineral spring and the waters were bottled and shipped out by rail. The Sizerville Bottling Works was opened in 1887 and functioned until about 1920.29 It did not appear to be a large employer, with the 1910 Census indicating only one employee. People came to the springs, some coming in from Buffalo on the morning train and returning in the evening.30 A hotel was erected in the 1880's, leased by Sizerville postmaster, James O. Kilbourn, and the area enjoyed a modest revenue from those coming to take the waters.31 The 1900 Census indicates one hotel keeper with three servants and a bath house attendant, but the 1910 and subsequent censuses do not indicate the presence of any hotel. The decline of the lumber industry and the closing of the mineral springs did not bode well for the area. As Sizerville was always unincorporated, specific population figures are not available, but the population of Portage Township continued to decline. In 1920 and 1930, the population of the township was 69 and 73 respectively.
Frank Goodyear, of Buffalo, NY, moved his lumber operation into the area just south of Sizerville in 1879, leasing Elijah Sizer’s small sawmill at the mouth of Sizer Run. He rebuilt and enlarged the mill and commenced cutting on Sizer Run in 1880. This coincides with the opening of the Sizerville post office, Prestonville having shut down a few years previously. Goodyear continued here until 1883, when he moved 3.3 miles south, to the mouth of Four Mile Run (four miles north of Emporium) and established a mill and the town of Goodyear.32 Goodyear post office was established August 7, 1883 and operated until July 15, 1899. According to the application for a post office, prepared by H. D. Burlingame and dated July 20, 1883, the “office will probably be supplied with a crane same as Sizerville + other small offices on the route.” The postmasters and their dates of appointment were: Homer D. Burlingame August 7, 1883 George H. Dodge April 20, 1887 Novatus P. Mansard April 1, 1892
Mr. Burlingame, in his request for a post office, indicated that his store, the sawmill, and the associated logging operation would easily generate as much mail as many more traditional post offices. There are no data available to indicate the size of the logging job, the community, or the number served, but while Hicks Run, a similar, but obviously larger operation, generated postmaster compensation in the $600-$700 range annually, Goodyear generated less than $100 at its peak. The mill functioned for a little over two years, while the post office continued for an additional fourteen. Today, just a few houses mark the spot.
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 20
The postmasters of Cameron, Cameron County, March 29, 1860-August 31, 1954, and their dates of appointment were: Epaphras B. Eldred March 29, 1860 Augustus McCormick January 2, 1865 John F. Pearsons November 9, 1865 Gersham L. Simpson June 18, 1867 Ezekiel R. Mayo February 10, 1869 Albert H. Mayo May 18, 1876 Wm. L. Herron April 19, 1877 James Estes September 10, 1885 Henry H. Alderfer June 18, 1889 Ross W. Barrows August 14, 1891 Malcolm L. McConnell May 9, 1899 D. Bruce Peterson July 17, 1899 Warren McConnell September 24, 1900 Delbert C. Lininger December 23, 1903 John Schwab December 9, 1908 Mildred E. Hazlett July 21, 1915 Daisy A. Stewart December 21, 1920 George L. Page November 1, 1923 Mrs. Agnes McVain February 2, 1925 Edward Schwab Acting April 10, 1940 Mrs. Dorothy N. Page May 31, 1941 Joseph T. Schreffler June 22, 1945 The 1910 Census provided the information that John Schwab was 33 years old, had been born in Switzerland, came to the United States in 1883, and listed his occupation as a retail merchant in groceries. It did not list him as postmaster. The 1920 Census reported Mildred Hazlett as 31 years old and listed her occupation as postmaster. In 1920, Daisy A. Stewart, who followed Mildred Hazlett as postmaster, was 27, had been born in Costello, Potter County, Pennsylvania, and was married to a coal miner. At the time of the census enumeration, she had no occupation. In 1930, Agnes McVain, a 64 year old widow, was listed as postmaster. Cameron has hosted a variety of economic activities over its long existence. There was, of course, the inevitable sawmill. Cameron also had a brick mill and a powder works.37 As at Canoe Run, there were coal deposits on the ridges near Cameron and mines were developed north and northeast of the town. The histories are unclear as to how the coal was moved from the ridge to the valley, however the 1910 Census gives us a clue. The occupation of one Cameron resident is listed as “Tender on Inclined Plane Coal Shutes”. South of Cameron, and on the west side of the Driftwood Branch, stands Sterling Run, situated near the mouth of Sterling Run. The Sterling Run post office also had a
23 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004
Baltimore Freight Money Letter Returned to Philadelphia as a Private Ship Letter By Van Koppersmith (# 412) Many postal historians may not realize that the rush to build and operate trans-Atlantic lines in the late 1830s was at least partially due to the large fees that were collected by carrying letters. The United States (and Canada for a shorter time period) allowed its postmasters to collect fees for sending letters on private ships. These fees, which were paid to the ship owner, were substantial and possibly eclipsed the profit for carrying passengers. Since these letters were carried on private ships not under contract, they actually entered the mails and were then carried out of the mails on their trans-Atlantic voyage. They re-entered the mails when they reached Great Britain.1 These letters are known as freight money letters (FML). Sailing ships charged 12 ½ ¢ for a single rate letter, 25 ¢ for a double, and so forth. Steamers charged twice the sailing ship rate. Freight money letters are known from many towns, including Baltimore, New Orleans and Philadelphia. New York, of course, had FML also, but the charge was almost never indicated. Philadelphia combined the postage and freight money charge into one manuscript rate. Most other cities noted the charges separately. FML are known from 1837 until 1848. The quantity of recorded covers peaks in the early 1840s and decreases rapidly, with covers after the rate change in 1845 being scarce.2 – 5
Figure 1 shows a single rate FML from Baltimore. The 18 ¾ ¢ postage and 25 ¢ freight money charge are indicated in manuscript in the upper right corner. The postage paid the 150-400 mi. single letter rate from Baltimore to New York, and the freight money charge paid the steamer rate for carriage across the Atlantic by the British Queen (manuscript notation at the lower left). Baltimore applied its postmark on October 5, 1842 and marked the cover PAID. As only done in Baltimore on FML, it is also marked SHIP.
Figure 1 The Baltimore handstamps are in blue.
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 26 The British Queen was sold to Belgium by the British &American Steam Navigation Co. in August 1841.6 During 1842 it made three round trip voyages (Antwerp – Southampton – New York).7 The FML in Figure 1 was carried on the last of these voyages, which departed from New York on Oct. 7, 1842.8 The cover is addressed to Isaac Tyson, Jr, Esquire. Wesley A. Crozier, a recently deceased postal history dealer and a long-time member of our Society (#184), researched Tyson and provided the following biography in one of his newsletters to his customers:
27 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Why is this cover being discussed in a Pennsylvania postal history journal? The answer can be found on the back of the cover (Figure 2). The cover was addressed to Tyson in Liverpool and was then redirected back to Tyson in Baltimore. Apparently it arrived after Tyson had departed England. It was docketed to be carried on the Columbus on the return voyage, but apparently was carried on the Thomas B Cope instead as indicated by the manuscript notations on the front at the upper left (docketing appears to contain the letter P instead of B). This sailing ship was part of the Cope Philadelphia to Liverpool line, so the cover was returned to Philadelphia as a private ship letter. Figure 2 shows the reverse where it was postmarked in Philadelphia on January 11, 1843, over three months after if it originally left Baltimore. Philadelphia also rated the cover as 14 ½ ¢ due: 12 ½ ¢ postage (80-150 mi. single letter rate) to Baltimore + 2 ¢ ship fee. Note that Philadelphia did not indicate it was a ship letter by applying a SHIP handstamp. This was likely deemed not necessary as Baltimore applied SHIP on the front and Liverpool marked the reverse SHIP LETTER. To my knowledge, this is the only recorded freight money letter to be returned as a ship letter.
Figure 2 Philadelphia handstamp, dated Jan. 11, struck in blue. “SHIP LETTER” and circular Liverpool datestamp, underneath it, struck in red.
References: 1.) R. F. Winter, The Chronicle, #135, Aug. 1987, pp. 208-214. 2.) Charless Hahn, The Chronicle, #99, Aug. 1978, pp. 156-165. 3.) Charless Hahn, The Chronicle, #100, Nov. 1978, pp. 228-235. 4.) Charless Hahn, The Chronicle, #106, May 1980, pp. 80-81. 5.) Charless Hahn, The Chronicle, #126, May 1985, pp. 92-94. 6.) F. Staff, The Transatlantic Mail, Quarterman Pub., 1980, p. 128. 7.) Ibid. p. 130. 8.) R. F. Winter, Private Communication. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 28 STAMPLESS COVERS from LINWOOD or LINWOOD STATION? By Ken Hall (# 519)
A short time ago, I was the lucky bidder or so I thought, on a Linwood, Pa, (Bradford County) cover with a manuscript postmark. The Linwood P. O. in Bradford County existed for a period of less than four years. At the time I was bidding on it, I didn’t ask for additional information from the seller. When I received it, I found that it was dated April 17, but did not have a year date (Figure 1). I contacted Tom Mazza and he suggested that it was more likely from Linwood Station (Deleware County) rather than Linwood (Bradford County).
Figure 1 Linwood April 17 (Author’s Collection) I started researching for additional Linwood covers and found that I had another one that was in a box of odds and ends, dated June 6, also without a year date (Figure 2). I also discovered that Phil Bansner had one listed dated Feb 9, but not year dated (Figure 3). The handwriting on all 3 covers and the placement of the handstamp PAID are the same on all three covers. There were two 19th Century Post Offices having the name Linwood. According to Kay and Smith (Pennsylvania Postal History), the first Linwood Post Office was established in Bradford County, December 3, 1855 and was discontinued on March 12, 1859, while the second was established as Linwood Station in Delaware County on January 22, 1859 and discontinued on March 31, 1916. At this point without comparing a Linwood Station
29 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 postmark with the postmarks of the 3 Linwood covers, I felt that there were two possibilities; (1) The accepted date of establishment of Dec 3, 1855 was incorrect. (2) The letters were mailed from Linwood Station in Delaware County (established Jan 22, 1859) and the postmaster just didn’t write the full name.
Figure 2 Linwood June 6 (Author’s Collection)
Figure 3 Linwood Feb 9 (Phil Bansner’s Cover)
HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 30 I contacted Rick Leiby and asked him if he had any covers from Linwood Station, and if he did, would he please send me a copy for comparison. After receiving Rick Leiby’s copy of the Linwood Station cover (Figure 4), and checking it with my other 3 covers, I now believe that the second possibility is correct. The handwriting and placement of the handstamps was the same on all 4 covers. For some reason, the postmaster just didn’t write the full name Linwood Station and shortened it to Linwood. Thus my search for that elusive cover from the Linwood Post Office in Bradford County continues. My thanks to Tom Mazza, Rick Leiby and Phil Bansner for their assistance.
Figure 4 Linwood Station Sep 20 (Rick Leiby’s Collection) •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Next Mid-Year Meeting of PPHS will be held at: LANCOPEX 2004
Saturday April 24, 2004 Farm and Home Center 1383 Arcadia Rd. Lancaster, PA 17601 For a Prospectus Contact: Jim Boyles P. O. Box 982 Lancaster, PA 17608-0982
31 HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 Remailed Postcard Engenders New EKU for Collingdale, Pa. Doane By Charles A. Fricke The markings on the postcard shown in Figure 1 clearly indicate that it was remailed rather than forwarded. Had the addressee given proper notice of her new address to the Post Office, it would have been forwarded at no charge, rather than remailed with postage due. Originally mailed with a 1¢ stamp from Westerly, R. I. on Aug. 10, 1905 and addressed to 3886 Arlington St., Philadelphia, Pa., it was received at Station C in Philadelphia on Aug. 12, 1905 at 4 AM. Apparently it was delivered and subsequently readdressed to 635 Parker Ave., Collingdale, Pa. and placed back in the mails. The manuscript notation at the upper left “ Remd / Shires 408” further indicates that it was remailed. Figure 1 The Philadelphia P. O. applied the “Postage Due, (1) Cents.” handstamp and postmarked the card by machine on Aug. 12 / 12-M. It was received at Collingdale on Aug. 14 at 8 AM where the 1¢ postage due stamp (Scott# J38) was applied and cancelled with their Doane. The Collingdale Doane Type 2 (5) is dated Aug. 14, 1805. The prior EKU for this Doane was Dec. 7, 1905 (Helbock and Anderson, United States Doanes, LaPosta Publications, Scappoose, Oregon, 2002). [Editor’s Note: Bob McKain, our PA Doane coordinator, has been informed of this new EKU].
The picture side of the card (Figure 2) has a view of MOONLIGHT ON THE BAY / WATCH HILL, R. I. and the brief message “Kindly greetings to all From J. B. Lainy”. I’m sure that the addresse was pleased to receive the card, even though it cost her an extra cent because she neglected to inform the Post Office of her new address.
Figure 2 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 32
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HISTORIAN Vol. 32, No. 1 (Whole No. 158) February 2004 34 Pennsylvania Postal Historian
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