STAMP COLLECTING MERIT BADGE Alpine District Merit Badge Fair November 16, 2019 Issaquah, WA 12:30 PM – 2:30 PM
BRING THE FOLLOWING WITH YOU TO THE WORKSHOP 1. Merit badge application card (“blue card”). The card must be signed by your unit leader. 2. Stamp Collecting Merit Badge handbook or listing of requirements.
PREREQUISITES 1. Bring your stamp collection from Requirement 8 (if you have one. If not, there will be starter stamps at the workshop). See “Your Collection” below. 2. Your stamp, postmark or cachet design (Requirement 7a) 3. Requirement 7b – tour a stamp show, visit a post office or stamp club
YOUR COLLECTION One of the key requirements for the Stamp Collecting Merit Badge is the assembly of an individual stamp collection. This requirement allows multiple collection options, but each of these options require scouts to obtain stamps and/or philatelic items that should be organized and presented in a simple album. Local stamp clubs hold bourses (stamp shows) and often auctions or other means by where stamps can be obtained to begin a collection. These local sources for stamps are often very affordable for the young, beginning collector. To complete the merit badge, attendees must show their finished collection with the full number and category of stamps as required. For assistance with building a collection, a listing of local clubs and shows is attached.
At the workshop, free “starter sets” of stamps with album pages, hinges and mounts will be provided for participants to get started on their collection if they haven’t already prepared one.
WORKSHOP SCHEDULE (preliminary) 12:30 PM Introductions, Requirement 1 – Background, understanding stamp collecting 12:45 PM Requirement 5 – Tools of collecting; hinges, tongs, water/tray, magnifier, mounts, glassines 1:15 PM Requirement 6 – Stamp album page display, mounting stamps 1:45 PM Requirement 2 – Define Topical collecting and other types of stamp collections 2:00 PM Requirement 3 – Examples of perf/imperf, mint/used, sheet/coil, covers, etc. 2:15 PM Requirement 4 – Cataloging, condition and value P a g e | 2
LOCAL STAMP CLUBS Many local stamp clubs have access to stamps and collecting supplies. The following list is compiled mainly from the rosters of the Northwest Federation of Stamp Clubs.
Collectors Club of Seattle (Philatelic Auction) Monthly auction held the first Friday of each month. Preview auction items beginning at 7:00 PM. Auction starts at 8:00 PM.
Auction location: Unity Church Information contact: Jim Hall, Treasurer 16330 NE 4th St. PO Box 2295 Bellevue, WA Kirkland WA 98083-2295 Phone: (206) 632-8235 Email: [email protected]
Evergreen Stamp Club Meets the third Wednesday of each month (except December) from 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Visitors welcome.
Meeting Location: Kent Commons Information Contact: Lisa Foster, Secretary 525 4th Ave N. Email: [email protected] Kent, WA
Club website: https://classic.stamps.org/Evergreen-Stamp-Club
Greater Eastside Stamp Society Meets the first and third Thursdays of each month.
Location: Panera Bread Café Club Mailing address: PO Box 7242 Bear Creek Shopping Center Bellevue, WA 98008 17262 Redmond Way Redmond, WA
Information contact: Dana Nielsen, President Phone: (360) 668-2699 18133 Snohomish Ave Email: [email protected] Snohomish WA 98296
Olympia Philatelic Society (Olympia/Lacey/Tumwater) The Olympia Philatelic Society meets on the second and fourth Mondays of each month. Although our formal meetings are usually quite brief and begin at about 7:00 p.m., the more enthusiastic members begin showing up around 6:00 PM. or so. Visitors welcome.
Location: Olympics West Retirement Inn, Mailing Address: PO Box 1554 929 Trosper Road SW Olympia WA 98507-1554 Tumwater, Washington
Club website: http://www.olympiaphilatelicsociety.org/ P a g e | 3
Sno-King Stamp Club (No. King and Snohomish Counties) Twice monthly meetings, except for July, August and December. Visitors welcome. • 2nd Wednesday, 7:30 – 9 PM, Snohomish County PUD, 2320 California Street, Everett, WA (room TC1-A - main floor) • Buy, sell, and trade stamps – (typically, 3rd Friday) 7:00 – 9 PM, South County Senior Center, 220 South Railroad Avenue, Edmonds, WA
Club website: http://sno-kingstampclub.freehostia.com/
Information Contact: Steve LaVergne, President 12726 Palatine Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98133 Phone: (206) 361-3774 Email: [email protected] Strait Stamp Society (Sequim) Meets the first Thursday of each month, 6:00 – 8:00 PM. Visitors are welcome.
Location: Sequim Library Information Contact: Cathie Osborne, Sec/Treas 630 N. Sequim Ave. PO Box 1781 Sequim, WA Sequim, WA 98382 Phone: (360) 683-6373 Email: [email protected]
Club website: http://www.straitstamp.org/Strait_Stamp.html
Tacoma Stamp Club (Tacoma/Puyallup/Pierce County) Meets 6:30 PM on fourth Tuesday of Each Month (except December) for a club business meeting and member auction. Visitors are welcome.
Location: Bay Terrace Community Center Information Contact: 2550 South ‘G’ Street Rick Crooks, TSC Newsletter Editor Tacoma, WA Email: [email protected] (@ corner of South 27th Street and ‘G’ Street)
Notes concerning stamp clubs: 1. Information listed may be outdated. Contact the club website or listed information contact to verify meeting dates and times. 2. Summer and Winter meetings for some of the listed clubs may be at a different date and location than listed. Contact the club representative or the club website for specifics. 3. See the Northwest Federation of Stamp Clubs website for other area stamp clubs not listed above: http://www.nwfedstamps.org/clubs.html
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STAMP SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONS Stamp shows and exhibitions are a good place to look for and purchase stamps. Many shows have “free youth areas” where Scouts can get access to free stamps. A good listing of local stamp shows and exhibitions can be found on the website of the NW Federation of Stamp Clubs: http://www.nwfedstamps.org/shows.html
WEBSITE RESOURCES Follow BSA social media guidelines when using websites or any online media. The sources below are associations with public websites that have helpful information for stamp collectors.
Smithsonian National Postal History Museum, Introduction to Stamp Collecting: https://postalmuseum.si.edu/stamp-collecting/introduction-to-stamp- collecting/introduction-to-stamp-collecting.html
American Philatelic Society, Getting Started: https://stamps.org/Learn/Getting-Started
American Topical Association, Printable Album Pages: http://americantopicalassn.org/yalbumpages.shtml
VIDEOS ONLINE Follow BSA social media guidelines when using websites or any online media. The sources below are videos that have helpful information for stamp collectors.
Stamps A World of Fun (4:27): https://youtu.be/FRMsUTbLK4U A basic introductory video to the hobby of stamp collecting
APS Stamp Collecting and Connecting (7:59): https://youtu.be/VhyT9K-ijVg A more detailed video about the hobby with an introduction to American Philatelic Society, their library, basic tools needed for stamp collecting and advice for purchasing and selling stamps.
How to Hinge Mount Stamps (0:57): https://youtu.be/3OLJFowAEmw Kenmore Stamp Company video on mounting stamps with hinges.
How to Mount Stamps (1:57): https://youtu.be/nTrmcxHczL0 Kenmore Stamp Company video on mounting stamps with pre-cut mounts.
How to Find Watermarks on Stamps (1:37): https://youtu.be/rkGjeP_XSdQ Kenmore Stamp Company video on using watermark fluid to identify and locate watermarks on stamps.
How to use a Perforation Gauge (0:51): https://youtu.be/6-38SfQQZqQ Kenmore Stamp Company video on using a perforation gauge to identify stamps
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Stamp Production (2:46): https://youtu.be/G7iAscgzEp4 Smithsonian National Postal Museum video showing the making of postage stamps, from nineteenth-century hand presses to modern offset production.
Printing Postage Stamps (6:09): https://youtu.be/vk7xhB0pZDI More detailed video on the production of postag stamps.
Collector’s Most Popular Topics – SBC (10:18): https://youtu.be/H64CWAYpA7E Top ten most popular topics for stamp collecting (American Topical Association).
Sorting and Organizing Stamps (2:08): https://youtu.be/YD0U3QwJywE A basic overview of how to organize and begin a collection.
MERIT BADGE REQUIREMENTS WORKSHEET A helpful worksheet to organize your progress on the stamp collecting merit badge can be viewed at this link:
http://usscouts.org/usscouts/mb/worksheets/Stamp-Collecting.pdf
There will be copies of this document available at the workshop, but it is suggested that participants use this and/or the Stamp Collecting Merit Badge book to become familiar with the merit badge requirements and to prepare for the workshop.
Remember to follow BSA social media guidelines when using websites or any online media.
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