2024

The October Newfoundland Study Group News is now available.

Gareth Williams is curious about a WW II censor marking on a postcard sent from Botwood to Denmark in October 1939.

Richard Baxter proposes a theory to explain why a cover from well-known Newfoundland stamp dealer Rev. Butler to a customer in Ohio was sent from New York City rather than Newfoundland.

View the October news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The October issue of The Pilot's Log (Vol. 17, No. 3), the newsletter of the Air Mail Study Group, has an article describing the history of the air mail services provided by Laurentide Air Service Limited. The newsletter also provides details about the joint meeting with the Canadian Aerophilatelic Society coming up on 3 November.

View the newsletter

The October issue (Vol. 45, No. 5) of the Squared Circle Study Group newsletter, The Roundup Annex, is online.

The newsletter includes a generous helping of updates to the Squared Circle Handbook. In addition, editor Gary Arnold is seeking help in determining the ERD for the Sutton West hammer, and David Robinson uncovers a mystery about a Waterloo, ON, strike on a 1¢ yellow Admiral imperforate.

View the newsletters of the Squared Circle Study Group.

Adri Veenstra has compiled the BNA exhibits by members that won awards during the months of July, August, and September. The listing covers International shows and Canadian and U.S. National shows. It also covers members' non-exhibit awards.

During the past three months, there were two National shows plus BNAPEX 2024 Kingston.

View the 2024 awards.

Rick Friesen has compiled a census entitled Census of 8¢ Small Queen Covers with Squared Circle Postmarks. As the title indicates, this census lists, describes, and illustrates (if an image is available) covers franked with the 8¢ Small Queen stamp, postmarked with Squared Circle hammer strikes.

The 8¢ Small Queen was issued in August 1893. Its primary use was to pay the first class mail rate (3¢) plus registration (5¢).

The census is organized according to hammer type, with the Type 2 hammers ordered by province/RPO as in the Squared Circle Postmarks of Canada handbook. The September 2024 initial release of the census lists 489 covers from 184 different hammers.

To view the census, scroll down to "Other resources" on the Squared Circle Study Group newsletters web page.

In the 2022 BNAPS election, Christopher J. Ellis was elected as a Director for the four-year term 2022-2026. This past August, Chris was elected Secretary, and his position as Director became vacant.

A special meeting of the BNAPS Board of Directors was held on Thursday, 26 September, to consider the appointment of Davd Hobden to fill the remainder of the Director term left vacant when Chris became Secretary. Under Section 6.2 of the BNAPS Policy and Procedures Manual, since there were more than 15 months remaining in Chris's directorship term, the executive was required to fill the vacancy. The Board approved David's appointment.

David Hobden was President of the Postal History Society of Canada (PHSC) from 2018 to 2022, Secretary/Treasurer from 2016 to 2022, and co-founder and organizer of the PHSC Symposium National Stamp Show that took place in 2017-2019. He has been a Director of the Vincent Graves Greene Philatelic Research Foundation since 2015 and a member of expertization committee since 2010.

His primary philatelic interest is early Canadian military mails. He also collects early Upper Canada and Halton County postal history. He received FIP Large Gold medals in postal history for his exhibit, In Defence of the Border – Canadian Military Mails 1667-1885, at the New York 2016 and London 2020 exhibitions. He was the recipient of the Grand Prix National at CAPEX 2022 for Canadian Mails and Dispatches of the War of 1812. He received the Grand Award at several National exhibitions: RPSC Royal 2008 Royale, ORAPEX 2009, FILEX 2015, and BNAPEX 2024.

View the list of BNAPS Officers, Directors, and appointed officials

The Newfoundland Study Group has published the Oct.-Dec. Newfoundland Newsletter, No. 197.

The newsletter begins with a report on BNAPEX 2024 Kingston. Of particular note, editor Malcolm Back won the John S. Siverts award for best study group newsletter of 2023.

Robin Moore presents photos of Newfoundland postal cancellation hammers as well as a proof sheet showing strikes of some of them. This is based on a talk he gave at BNAPEX 2024.

In response to Klaus Wehlt's article on the Newfoundland C.O.D. service in the July-Sept. 2024 newsletter, David Handelman provides more information on the service, extracted from the Newfoundland Gazette.

Bill Coates provides scans of a collection of Waterlow & Sons Ltd. progressive proofs of the 1941-1944 Resources Issue. This newsletter features the 1¢ Cod and 2¢ King George V. The rest of the collection will appear in subsequent issues.

View the Oct.-Dec. newsletter (No. 197).

The September issue (No. 172) of the Perfin Study Group newsletter, The BNA Perforator, is online.

The Perfin Study Group has been active for almost 45 years, has published 172 issues of its newsletter, and has released several editions of its comprehensive Perfin Handbook. Is there anything left to discover and study? If you think the answer is "no", you should read Russell Sampson's article on "The Future of BNA Perfin Studies", in which he describes several exciting perfin areas left to explore. The article is based on a talk he gave at BNAPEX 2024 Kingston.

Russell and Jim Graham explore some of the areas in other newsletter articles. Russell presents a latest reported usage of a Gordon, Mackey & Co Ltd. perfin, and uses it as a springboard to investigate the decline of perfin usage.

Jim Graham presents his research to determine the city where the Western Union Telegraph Company used its perforating machine. In a second article, he illustrates a strip of five of the 1928 2¢ Scroll stamp. The strip shows the five dies of the Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada perfin used in Quebec City.

View the September newsletter (No. 172).

The Oct.-Dec. issue of First Impressions (No. 53), the newsletter of the First Day Cover Study Group, is posted.

Gary Dickinson continues his studies of ArtCraft’s Canadian FDCs. He discusses cachets that were designed expressly for Canadian stamp issues and special purpose cachets used for issues of two or more countries including Canada.

Mildred Hodson, a stamp dealer in Scotland, produced a small number of Canadian cachets during the 1950s. Jan Pieter (John) van der Ven describes her work.

John Berg explores what he calls "cross-over" cachets for Christmas stamps from ArtCraft in the U.S. and Rosecraft in Canada.

Gary Dickinson highlights the cachets of designer Kevin Colton that won awards at the American First Day Cover Society 2023 contest. Colton has designed cachets for several hundred Canadian stamps since 2016.

View the newsletter.

At BNAPEX 2024 Kingston, members Hugo Deshaye, John Hall, and Bill Longley were inducted into the Order of the Beaver (OTB). The OTB is the Fellowship of the British North America Philatelic Society.

Member Roy Houtby was given the OTB-Lifetime Achievement Award. The OTB-LAA recognizes philatelists who have made significant contributions to BNA philately but who might not meet the criteria for induction into the Order of the Beaver.

Profiles of the four members are posted on the OTB web pages.

View the profiles

Every year, BNAPS officers and officials prepare reports that describe their activities during the past year. These reports are tabled at the Board of Directors (BOD) meeting, which this year was held on Thursday, 22 August, at the BNAPS convention in Kingston, ON.

The reports are reviewed at the BOD meeting and the Society's Annual General Meeting. BNAPS members can now view all the reports on the website. The approved minutes of the Board of Directors meeting at BNAPEX 2023 Halifax and the 2023 Annual General Meeting are also posted (click on the "2023" buttons).

The 2024 Treasurer's Report is for fiscal year 2023.

Access to the reports and minutes is restricted to BNAPS members. You must log in to view them.

Reports of BNAPS officers and officials

J. D. Graham has written "The History of Canada’s OHMS Official Perforated Postage Stamps 1939-1949". The article provides a detailed account of the adoption of stamps perforated OHMS by Federal Government departments beginning in 1939. It describes their use over a ten-year period, the regulations surrounding their use, and their eventual replacement by stamps overprinted OHMS.

The article illustrates OHMS perfins on and off cover during their period of use and a Cummins Model 53 perforating machine such as the one used to create the OHMS perfins.

This fascinating history draws on primary reference sources, the files from the Post Office Department Financial Branch held by Library and Archives Canada.

The article can be found in the ORE area and the Perfin Study Group web pages.

View the article. Scroll down to "Other resources and references".

Brian Damien has compiled a comprehensive index to the newsletter and news bulletin of the Newfoundland Study Group.

The index covers all the issues of Newfoundland Newsletter up to No. 196 (July-Sept. 2024) and BNAPS Newfoundland Study Group News up to the August 2024 issue.

View the index. Scroll down to "Other resources".

Have you ever dreamed of making a fabulous philatelic find? The September newsletter, No. 131, of the British Columbia Postal History Study Group describes one such find in the words of the postal historian who made it. It's the Harvey Bailey Co. find made by Alex Price.

Tracy Cooper describes a find he made, an 1893 printed matter wrapper, registered.

How about a post office named after its first and only postmaster? Tim Woodland discusses one, Corfield.

How many names did the city of Mission go through? Morris Beattie lists them in his detailed postal history of the community.

Tom Watkins book-ends the newsletter with an article describing the courtesy airmail service provided by Queen Charlotte Airlines from 1946 to 1852.

View the newsletter.

The August issue of Dots and Scratches (No. 35), the newsletter of the Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties Study Group, features three articles written by its editor, Jim Jung.

The first one describes hairline cracks found on the 1903 King Edward VII 5¢ value. Russell Sampson is currently studying hairline cracks, and provides some commentary.

The second is a profusely illustrated description of plate flaws, some well known, others not, on the 1859 5¢ Beaver stamp.

The third deals with flaws found on the 1935 King George V Pictorial Issue.

The issue also has a memorial to the late Ralph Trimble by Ken Snelson.

View the newsletters of the Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties Study Group.

The BNAPEX 2024 Program is posted. The link to it is on the BNAPEX 2024 home page.

The Palmares is available. The link to it is on the BNAPEX 2024 Exhibits page.

BNAPEX 2024 home page

Posted just before BNAPEX 2024 Kingston, the August issue (Vol. 13, No. 3) of the Pence-Cents Era Study Group newsletter is now available.

The issue features two articles by Ron Majors. One deals with letters to and from the Red River Settlement during the Decimal Period. The other continues his survey of non-letter covers during the Decimal Period, this time covers to overseas destinations, including some that are very scarce to unique.

With the help of images provided by Earl Noss and Jim McCormick, editor Jim Jung explores plate flaws on states 10-11, position 4, of the 1859 First Cents Issue 5¢ Beaver.

Did you know there was a town called Ontario in Upper Canada? Bill Longley sheds light on this topic in answer to a question about a cover posed in the previous issue.

The newsletter also has an article on the pony express by Glenn D. Bradley and a memorial to Ralph E. Trimble by Ken Snelson.

View the newsletter.

The BNAPEX 2024 souvenirs are illustrated on the Souvenirs web page.

There are six covers commemorating three anniversaries plus a pane of overprinted Royal Canadian Air Force stamps issued in 1999.

View the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston web pages.

The August issue of The Pilot's Log (Vol. 17, No. 2), the newsletter of the Air Mail Study Group, has notices about the upcoming Study Group meeting at BNAPEX 2024 Kingston on Saturday, 24 August, and the Day of Aerophilately 2024 joint meeting with the Canadian Aerophilatelic Society (CAS) on Sunday, 3 November, at the Vincent Graves Greene Philatelic Research Foundation in Toronto.

View the newsletter.

The August issue (Vol. 45, No. 4) of the Squared Circle Study Group newsletter, The Roundup Annex, is online.

Bill Radcliffe provides an example of the 1880 Ottawa Precursor cancel, dated SP 11/80.

The latest reported date of the period 1 usage of the Hamilton, ON, squared circle has been the subject of some debate. David Robinson provides additional information about the issue.

The newsletter includes more updates about the use of squared circle cancels.

View the newsletters of the Squared Circle Study Group.

The results of the 2024 BNAPS election held from 1 July to 27 July have been announced.

View the election results

The August Newfoundland Study Group News follows on the heels of the July issue.

Blair Ashford offers an explanation for the franking found on a parcel-front for a registered parcel mailed to the U.S. Klaus Wehlt illustrated the parcel-front in the July issue when he inquired about the rate.

The August issue also has several Study Group announcements.

View the August news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The July issue of the Newfoundland Study Group news bulletin features an investigative article and several announcements.

Klaus Wehlt investigates the rate, postal markings, and label on a parcel-front for a registered parcel mailed to the U.S.

Brian Damien has compiled an index to the Newfoundland Newsletter. It is available from newsletter editor Malcolm Back.

Malcolm Back is looking for articles to mark the 200th issue of the newsletter next year.

View the July news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

Gary Steele contributed an award-winning one-frame exhibit, Ottawa Dead Letter Office Handstamps 1872 to 1898 Decentralization, to the Online Resources and Exhibits (ORE).

With Confederation in 1867, a new Post Office Department was created, but Dead Letter Office (DLO) handstamps were not produced until the early 1870s. Initially, only one office was set up. It was in Ottawa. On 1 July 1898, the DLO was decentralized. Branches were opened across Canada. This exhibit shows the evolution of Ottawa Dead Letter Office (DLO) handstamps from 1872 up to the decentralization on 1 July 1898.

The exhibit won a Large Gold and several special awards at ORAPEX 2024.

View the latest additions to the ORE.

BNAPS published a new book in its Exhibit series, The Centennial Definitives of Canada, 1967 to 1973 by Douglas Irwin.

The exhibit is divided into two parts:

1) The sheet stamps, coils, booklets, cello-paqs, regular and special-order postal stationery
2) Extensive coverage of Centennial postal history

View the latest BNAPS books

The RPO Study Group posted the booklet Instructions to Railway Mail Clerks on the BNAPS website. The booklet was prepared by the Controller, Railway Mail Service, Post Office Department, and published in January 1913.

Railway mail clerks had a very demanding job. What qualifications did they have to meet? What were their duties? How was their performance evaluated? How much were they paid? These questions and many other facets of the railway mail clerk's job are described in the booklet.

To view the booklet, click on the "Books, articles, exhibits" button, and scroll down.

The July-Sept. newsletter (No. 196) of the Newfoundland Study Group is posted.

Rev. E. A. Butler is probably the most well known Newfoundland stamp dealer. Malcolm Back presents email correspondence with his descendants along with photographs.

Klaus Wehlt has a detailed article on the C.O.D. service in Newfoundland. In a second article, he explains why a cover mailed in 1945 from Newfoundland to Denmark was routed to Canada to be censored. In his third contribution, he illustrates a 1948 cover from St. John's to a very scarce destination, Romania.

John M. Walsh, Richard H. Judge, and Terry Rhoades analyze the ink used to print the 1d and 5d stamps in the 1857, 1860, and 1861 Pence issues. A second article does the same for the 2d, 4d, 6d, 6½d, 8d, and 1/- values.

View the Newfoundland Study Group newsletters.

The July newsletter (No. 97) of the Fancy Cancel & Miscellaneous Markings Study Group is available.

The fancy cancels mentioned in this newsletter come from New Glasgow, NS, Colchester, ON, Hamilton, ON, Ottawa, ON, Toronto, ON, sub office No. 4, and Kingston, ON.

The fancy cancel reporters include Randy Evans, Rick Friesen, Alec Globe, Mike Halhed, and Guillaume Vadeboncoeur.

What is a "fancy cancel"? What criteria does a cancel have to satisfy to be considered "fancy"? Editor Dave Lacelle answers these questions as he explains some of the jargon used by fancy cancel collectors.

View the July newsletter.

From BNAPS President David McLaughlin:

Following Earle Covert’s retirement as Convention Committee Chairman last year, I am pleased to appoint Dave Bartlet to fulfill the Convention Committee Chairman role.

Dave is an experienced and frequent exhibitor at the annual BNAPEX exhibitions and other regional and national exhibitions in Canada. He has also served on exhibition organizing committees both regionally and nationally. From 2016 – 2022, Dave served as the BNAPS Vice President Regional Groups. The annual BNAPEX convention is our hallmark event and with his experience as exhibitor, organizing committee member, Vice President Regional Groups, and his keen interest in the role, I am confident that we can look forward to more memorable BNAPEX conventions under his leadership as Convention Committee Chairman.

Please join with me in congratulating Dave Bartlet on his appointment and in thanking Earle Covert for his many years of service as Convention Committee Chairman.

List of Convention Committee chairs

Adri Veenstra has compiled the BNA exhibits by members that won awards during the months of April, May, and June. The listing covers International shows and Canadian and U.S. National shows.

View the 2024 awards.

Every two years, BNAPS holds an election for its officers and five of its ten Directors. The 2024 election goes from 1 to 27 July. Voting is restricted to BNAPS members whose 2024 dues were paid before 1 April.

Members who have provided their email address to BNAPS can cast their ballot online. Members who have not provided their email address will be sent a paper ballot by mail.

More information is available in the July issue of the BNAPS eLetter. Results will be announced at the BNAPS convention in Kingston, 23-25 August.

View the election ballot and candidate biographies (login required)

The June issue of the Dead Letter Office Study Group newsletter, No. 14, features reports of several new finds.

Hugh Rathbun was given a 1946 catalogue by a local Post Office that had a list of Dead Letter Office envelopes for both internal and external use.

Editor Gary Steele found a Dead Letter Office handstamp on a Customs label on a Parcel Post item. From 1905, this is the first time he has seen such a thing.

He also found two previously unknown DLO handstamps. One was from Toronto on a 1908 Valentine's Day postcard. The other was from Edmonton, AB, on a 1946 cover.

Gary is looking for DLO articles and reports for future newsletters.

View the DLO Study Group's June newsletter.

The June issue of The Pilot's Log (Vol. 17, No. 1), the newsletter of the Air Mail Study Group, has notices about the upcoming Study Group meeting at BNAPEX 2024 Kingston on Saturday, 24 August, and the Day of Aerophilately 2024 joint meeting with the Canadian Aerophilatelic Society (CAS) on Sunday, 3 November, at the Vincent Graves Greene Philatelic Research Foundation in Toronto.

The newsletter also has information on RCAF anniversary covers prepared for the CAS and anniversary covers for BNAPEX 2024 Kingston. David Bartlet is preparing the covers.

View the newsletter.

The July-Sept. issue of First Impressions (No. 52), the newsletter of the First Day Cover Study Group, is on the website.

Douglas A. Hill defines three stages in the development of first day covers: minimal, private, and official. He then lists an impressive series of milestones in the evolution of FDC cancellations, postmarks, cachets, envelopes, text, etc.

Gary Dickinson continues his survey, begun in the previous issue, of privately produced FDCs for Canadian stamps of the 21st century.

Gary Dickinson also describes studies by John van der Ven on Grover cachets and Middlesex Stamp Circle FDCs.

In the previous newsletter, Jon Berg asked about cachet maker Frederick Rogers Rice of Ballston, Virginia. The current issue has two responses to his query, from Allan Warren and Mark Lerner.

View the newsletter.

The June issue of the Newfoundland Study Group news bulletin has a mix of old and new topics.

Gareth Williams contributes several clippings from publications dating back to 1901-1904 dealing with France's fishing rights on the French shore of Newfoundland.

Gareth also submits a letter from H. R. Harmer dealing with the firm's assessment as to the genuineness of a block of four of the 75¢ Labrador Airmail issue with the Balbo inverted overprint.

Blair Ashford illustrates a 1943 special delivery cover, and points to 1937 and 1948 extracts of the Newfoundland Post Office Circular with conflicting messages about the special delivery service in Newfoundland.

View the June news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The RPO Study Group published the article "Oshawa-Waterloo, Ontario Registered Letter" by Frank R. Scheer on the BNAPS website.

This article traces the route taken by a registered letter mailed in 1937 from Oshawa to Waterloo, ON, and the speed with which the letter was delivered using the RPO postmarks on the back of the cover.

To view the article, go to this link, click on the "Books, articles, exhibits" button, and scroll down to article.

The Squared Circle Study Group published the June issue (Vol. 45, No. 3) of its newsletter, The Roundup Annex.

David Robinson provides several updates to the Winnipeg hammer 1 listing in the Squared Circle Postmarks of Canada handbook.

Rick Friesen continues his report on notable squared circle strikes from the William Radcliffe collection. The report in this issue covers the Queen Victoria Leaf and Numeral issues.

View the newsletters of the Squared Circle Study Group.

Ralph E. Trimble FRPSC passed away on 8 March 2024.

He was a member of BNAPS, the Philatelic Specialists Society of Canada (PSSC), and the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada (RPSC). He was elected a Fellow of the RPSC in 2006.

He was well known as a specialist in re-entries, having founded the BNAPS Re-entries Study Group and created a website devoted to this subject. He was also noted for his volunteer work in organized philately.

Read Ralph's memorial.

The June newsletter, No. 130, of the British Columbia Postal History Study Group features an article that combines philately and postal history. The article, by editors Morris Beattie and Tracy Cooper, has capsule profiles of ten pioneer British Columbia postal historians.

The newsletter has three "favourite cover/cancel" contributions. Malcolm Leitch describes an October 1862 cover that travelled from Yale, BC, to Italy. Tim Woodland's favourite cover has links to the forest industry and social philately, plus it has ties to the pioneer postal historians lead article. Tracy Cooper's current favourite cancel is a recent eBay acquisition, a never before reported strike of the Numeral #25 cancel on a 3d British Columbia colonial stamp.

Brian Plain discusses the steamer Aberdeen. It was built by the CPR, and entered service on 3 May 1892, delivering mail to small communities along Lake Okanagan.

Brian Copeland and Tim Woodland explore the early mail service on Lasqueti Island, located between Qualicum on Vancouver Island and Texada Island. The island had two post offices, Lasqueti and False Bay.

Along with the newsletter, the Study Group published a monograph by Ian Kimmerly and Gray Scrimgeour, Cable Repair in the Pacific, 1937-1942. It describes items from an extensive correspondence between 1937 and 1942 involving Henry Porter, a trans-Pacific cable repair worker based in Victoria, British Columbia. The correspondence provides extremely rare examples of Canadian mail across the Pacific.

View the newsletter. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to view the monograph.

Joseph M. Smith passed away on 3 October 2023. He was a member of BNAPS, the Postal History Society of Canada (PHSC), and the Canadian Philatelic Society of Great Britain (CPSGB).

Joe chaired the BNAPS Squared Circle Study Group from 1997 until his death. He exhibited at many BNAPS conventions, winning Gold at BNAPEX 2012 Calgary, and authored numerous articles in BNA Topics, the PHSC Journal, and Maple Leaves.

Read Joe's memorial.

The BNAPEX 2024 Kingston home page features sample pages from the “The Philatelic History of Kingston from 1673 to the Present Day” Court of Honour exhibit.

Under "Important dates", the BNAPEX home page specifies the deadlines for registration to the convention events. The deadline to register for the Awards Banquet or the full package (banquet and dinner cruise) is Friday, 26 July. The deadline to register for just the dinner cruise is Monday, 12 August.

The deadline to enter exhibits is fast approaching. It is 23 June.

View the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston web pages.

Leopold Beaudet submitted a presentation entitled "Constant Plate Flaws on Elizabethan Stamps" to the ORE.

During the Elizabethan period, 1953 to 2022, Canadian stamps were printed by several different methods: engraving, lithography, photogravure, and combinations thereof. The presentation describes the types of flaws produced by each printing method. During the 70-year Elizabethan period, printing methods underwent major changes. The presentation looks at how the evolution of the printing processes affected the types of flaws.

List of new ORE contributions

Gary Steele contributed a one-frame exhibit to the ORE: Canadian Mail Sent via the Empire Air Mail Scheme 1938 - 1939.

The use of air mail to carry all first-class mail from Great Britain to certain Empire countries was inaugurated by Great Britain on 29 June 1937. The service, called the Empire Air Mail Scheme (EAMS), extended to South Africa. On 23 February 1938, the second stage was implemented. The EAMS service was extended to Canadian mail per the notice in the Canadian postal guide supplement dated 5 February. In the third stage, the service was extended to Australia and New Zealand. Additional destinations were admitted at various times.

The exhibit won Vermeil and the Canadian Aerophilatelic Society’s Best Airmail Exhibit award at BNAPEX 2023 Halifax.

List of new ORE contributions

Newfoundland Study Group members raised questions on several topics in the April news bulletin and April-June newsletter. The recently published May bulletin sheds light on these questions.

Klaus Wehlt found letters to the U.S. franked with only 4¢ but with no postage due markings, a surprise because the rate to the U.S. was 5¢ at the time. Was there a special rate? Follow the discussion in the May bulletin.

The 75¢ Labrador Airmail issue with the Balbo inverted overprint was discussed in the April-June newsletter and April news bulletin. Marc Castel presents addition census data about this stamp.

View the May news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

You can now register for the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston convention.

The BNAPEX 2024 registration form is an online form this year. No need to fill in a paper or PDF form and submit it by mail or email. Using the form, you and your spouse or partner or guest can register for the following events:

►  A three-hour dinner cruise on the St. Lawrence River on Friday evening.
►  The BNAPS Past Presidents' Reception and Awards Banquet on Sunday evening.

Registration details and online form

The bottom line of the table on page 43 of the Apr.-June 2024 issue of BNA Topics (2024 Q2) was inadvertently omitted from the print edition.

The online version of the issue has been revised to correct the error. In addition, several textual changes were made to page 43.

View the latest issues of BNA Topics.

Adri Veenstra has compiled the BNA exhibits by members that won awards during the first three months of this year. The listing covers International shows and Canadian and U.S. National shows.

View the 2024 awards.

The Lower Canada / Bas Canada Regional Group held a virtual meeting via Zoom on 26 March. 13 members attended the "Show and Tell" meeting.

As might be expected from the Show and Tell format, the meeting delved into a wide range of subjects, going from early Quebec revenue stamp usage to a non-philatelic cover franked with a 2007 Jasper National Park imperforate stamp.

Read the meeting report.

The Perfin Study Group has just published the May issue (No. 171) of its newsletter, The BNA Perforator.

Jim Graham discusses the two perfin patterns used by Osler Hammond and Nanton. This firm was based in Winnipeg, and played a large role in the early development of the Canadian west.

Russell D. Sampson analyses extra perforations found on a Great West Life (GWL) perfin, and proposes a theory to explain their occurrence. The examples he uses come from the collection of David MacLellan.

In his second article, Jim Graham unveils a mystery concerning the International Harvester Company of Canada perfin on two 1¢ green Admiral stamps used fiscally on a promissory note.

View the newsletter.

The May issue (Vol. 13, No. 2) of the Pence-Cents Era Study Group newsletter features two well illustrated articles on plate flaws plus a third on a little explored area of postal history.

With the aid of images provide by Earl Noss, Jim Jung describes several flaws on the 1959 First Cents Issue 10¢ Consort that, for the most part, appeared late in the life of this stamp. Jim Jung also reviews some of the many plate flaws found on the 5¢ Beaver.

On the postal history side, Jim Jung discusses auxiliary markings, post office markings not intended to cancel the stamps on the cover.

View the newsletter.

The May issue of Dots and Scratches (No. 34), the newsletter of the Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties Study Group, has been posted on the website.

Jim McCormick discusses the 6¢ Small Queen lesser 5-on-6 variety.

Jim Jung illustrates and plates two flaws on the Admiral 50¢ stamp.

Jim Jung also explores several flaws on the 1959 First Cents Issue 10¢ Consort with the aid of images provide by Earl Noss, and a multitude of scratch flaws found on the 5¢ Beaver with many images provided by Michael D. Smith.

View the newsletters of the Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties Study Group.

Gary Steele contributed a one-frame exhibit, Canadian Dead Letter Office Reorganization Handstamps, to the Online Resources and Exhibits (ORE).

The exhibit shows the new style rectangle Dead Letter Office handstamps, produced when the
Post Office was reorganized in 1948. All mail directed to Dead Letter Offices was to be sent only to Montreal, Toronto or Vancouver, depending upon the point of origin and destination. Mail containing valuables that could not be redirected and mail suspected of being illegal or of a fraudulent nature was to be forwarded to the Dead Letter Office in Ottawa.

The exhibit won a Large Vermeil at CANPEX 22 in Toronto, 9-12 June.

View the latest contributions to the ORE.

Newfoundland Study Group members raise several questions in the April news bulletin.

Blair Ashford would like to learn more about postmarks from Corner Brook and Harbour Grace plus a possible Parcel Post cancel that reads "INSURED No." with a date.

John M. Walsh responds to a query from Marc Castel in the April-June newsletter about the 75¢ Labrador Airmail issue with the Balbo overprint.

In a collection of Newfoundland WW II censorship covers, Klaus Wehlt found two with a postmark he had not seen before. It reads "HEAD P.M. G.P.O." He thinks the postmark was used in St. John's at the General Post Office. He also found letters to the U.S. franked with only 4¢ but with no postage due markings, a surprise because postage to the U.S. was 5¢ at the time.

View the April news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The April issue (Vol. 45, No. 2) of The Roundup Annex, the newsletter of the Squared Circle Study Group, is available.

David Robinson provides updates to the Port Perry, ON, listing in the Squared Circle Postmarks of Canada handbook.

Rick Friesen reports on more notable squared circle strikes from the William Radcliffe collection. The reports cover the Small Queen, Queen Victoria Leaf, King Edward, and Quebec Tercentenary issues plus envelopes/post cards/letter cards and miscellaneous items.

And the newsletter continues the flow of reports and updates from Study Group members.

View the newsletters of the Squared Circle Study Group.

The April-June newsletter (No. 195) of the Newfoundland Study Group is online.

In 1921, the Newfoundland government gave pilot Sidney Cotton a contract to establish air mail service from St. John's, Newfoundland, to Halifax, Nova Scotia. On the first flight, the Newfoundland Prime Minister, Richard Squires, prepared over 100 covers to mark the occasion. Greg Pope discusses these covers. Note: page 4A, distributed separately from the original newsletter, is included in the newsletter on the website.

John M. Walsh continues his investigation into the size differences found on the 1857, 1860 and 1861 2d, 4d, 6d, 6½d, 8d and 1/- Pence Issue denominations.

A Newfoundland air mail stamp was overprinted in 1933 to mark the Balbo flight. Using images in auction catalogues and other sources, Marc Castel reconstructs several blocks with the overprint inverted, and makes some interesting discoveries.

View the Newfoundland Study Group newsletters.

The BNAPEX 2024 Kingston online exhibit entry form is available. Go to the BNAPEX Exhibits page and click on the "Online form" button.

You can now submit your exhibit online and upload your synopsis, title page, and exhibit pages to the BNAPS web server. When you access the form, you will be prompted to log in if you aren't already.

View the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston web pages.

A memorial has been posted for David Piercey, FRPSC. He passed away on 8 October 2023.

David Piercey was a prolific author and exhibitor, and won numerous awards for these activities. He was an accredited RPSC national philatelic judge, and developed the Exhibit Feedback Form used throughout North America to evaluate exhibits.

Besides BNAPS, he was a member of the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada, the Philatelic Specialists Society of Canada, the Canadian Philatelic Society of Great Britain, and the Postal History Society of Canada.

View David's memorial.

The procedure to book a room at the St. Lawrence College Residence has been finalized. Go to the Accommodation page and click "Online booking procedure" or download the document "SLC accommodation info".

The Best Western Fireside Inn has set aside a block of rooms for BNAPEX goers who prefer to stay at a hotel. Details on the Accommodation page.

There are updates to the Dealers, Seminars, and Travel pages. See the News page for details.

View the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston web pages.

The initial web pages for BNAPEX 2024 Kingston are now posted.

More details on accommodation at the St. Lawrence College Residence will be available in the next few days. The BNAPEX Committee is also making arrangements for a block of rooms at a nearby hotel.

Many of the study groups will be meeting at the convention. See the Seminars page for details.

The dealers page has a preliminary list of dealers who will have a table at the bourse. More are expected in the coming weeks.

The registration form should be available in early April.

View the BNAPEX 2024 Kingston web pages.

BNAPS published three new books in February. Two of them are in its Exhibits series.

â–º  A People-Centered Philately: Canadian Pre-Stamped Post Card Advertising Series - Christopher Ellis
This book explores the advertising of private companies on official issue, pre-stamped, Canadian postal stationery postcards. It places them in a human-centered and historical context, focusing on the human beings and companies behind the postcards.

â–º  King George V Oval Die Postal Stationery Envelopes - Earle L Covert (Exhibit series No. 119)
The exhibit shows the complete scope of King George V envelopes – flat plate, embossed and “Lined Hair” varieties.

â–º  Rates, Usage and Varieties on Cover During the Cents Issue Era: 1859-1868 - David Schurman (Exhibit series No. 121)
The exhibit displays the postal rates in effect from 1859 to 1867 and show the ways the mails were used. It includes a sampling of major varieties that appeared during the printing of the Cents stamps and stampless covers mailed during this period.

View the latest BNAPS books

After a two-year hiatus, Gary Dickinson has volunteered to again edit the FDC Study Group newsletter, First Impressions. He has just published the April-June issue, No. 51.

When Canada Post began producing first day covers, most of the cachet makers got out of the business. But not all. Gary Dickinson surveys the FDC producers who have been active since 2000. Very little is known about some of them. Can you fill in the blanks?

Bob Vogel discusses the work of a previously unknown cachet printer, A.W Dicks of Toronto, and illustrates a number of cachets produced in the 1960s.

Jon Berg submits a FDC for the 1937 Mufti definitive issue, and is looking for other cachets by the same maker, F. R. Rice of Ballston, Virginia.

Richard Hoffman wonders whether FDCs exist for the booklet pane for Canada’s last airmail stamp, the 1946 Peace Issue 7¢ Canada Goose. FDCs are listed in some catalogues.

View the newsletter.

The March news bulletin of the Newfoundland Study Group is on the website.

Blair Ashford responds to the report by Earl Noss in the February bulletin about possible plate flaws on the 5¢ value of the 1910 John Guy Issue printed by lithography.

Earl Noss illustrates a cover from Newfoundland to Scotland, ON, and explains what attracted him to it. He also illustrates a Roessler cover for an aborted first flight from Halifax to St. Johns. Chris Hargreaves provides additional background information on the aborted flight based on research by Alec Globe.

View the March news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The February newsletter (No. 96) of the Fancy Cancel & Miscellaneous Markings Study Group is to hand.

The fancy cancels mentioned in this newsletter come from Souris East, PE, Whycocomagh, NS, Montreal, QC, Sherbrooke, QC, Cannington, ON, Lindsay, ON, and Millbrook, ON.

Fancy cancel reporters include Mike Halhed, Jack Forbes, Jim McCormick, Robin Simpson, Robert Lemire, and Gordon Smith.

In addition, editor David Lacelle comments on the accuracy of hand-drawn fancy cancel tracings, proof strikes of the “Ottawa Crown” fancy cancel, fakes and bogus items, philatelic covers, and “skull and cross bones” fancy cancels from the U.S. and Canada.

View the newsletter.

The February newsletter (Vol. 13, No. 1) of the Pence-Cents Era Study Group has a mix of stamp and postal history articles.

Vic Willson writes about a cover that paid the interprovincial letter rate of 3d per ½ oz. after 6 July 1851. What attracted him to the cover was that it was shortpaid. While researching it, he found several other noteworthy features.

Part 3 of Eastern Auction’s sale of the Brigham Pence collection features the only cover with a sheet marginal example of the 12 pence. John M. Walsh, Ron Majors, and Yohann Tanguay collaborate to confirm the lot description stating that this is one of only eight known 12 pence covers.

Michael D. Smith and Jim Jung discuss the re-entered printer’s imprint on the 3d Beaver stamp and flaws found on stamps immediately below the imprint.

Gilles Morel illustrates a newly discovered mixed franking cover from Hamilton to London, England, mailed in 1864. His article combines stamps and postal history. He identifies the stamp position and discusses the routing of the cover and its recipient.

Ron Majors describes several covers from the 1859 Cents era sent to England and forwarded to a second destination in England.

In another article that combines stamps and postal history, Jim Jung explores the gouge flaw on the 1859 5¢ Beaver stamp using as springboard a copy on cover from Bill Radcliffe’s collection.

View the newsletters of the Pence-Cents Era Study Group

The March newsletter, No. 129, of the British Columbia Postal History Study Group is on the website.

Pete Jacobi contributes this issue’s favourite cover, part of the “Drewry Find”, that he chose for its historical relevance.

The issue features another cover, an 1860 stampless mourning cover that crossed the border between Canada and U.S. twice, from Montreal to New York and from San Francisco to New Westminster.

Mark Oakley describes his research into the correspondence of the Manson family of Nanaimo and the Mouat family of Saltspring Island, triggered by a cancel from Metlakatla, located 7 km northwest of Prince Rupert.

Tracy Cooper illustrates a bargain he found on eBay, a wrapper mailed in 1890 from North Saanich, BC, to a tiny fishing village in Hawaii.

Brian Copeland explores the opening and closing of the post offices at Independent and Lantzville north of Nanaimo due to coal mining operations in the area.

Morris Beattie continues his postal history of the Texada Island post offices in the Powell River Region. He looks at the Blubber Bay and Gillies Bay post offices.

View the newsletters of the British Columbia Postal History Study Group.

The February news bulletin of the Newfoundland Study Group is available.

John M. Walsh discusses the size and colour variations on Newfoundland's 5d Pence stamp. He also plates a flaw on this stamp reported by Earl Noss.

Earl Noss has found more possible plate flaws, this time on the 5¢ value of the 1910 John Guy Issue printed by lithography. Can anyone confirm the flaws and identify the position?

View the February news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The February issue (Vol. 45, No. 1) of The Roundup Annex, the newsletter of the Squared Circle Study Group is available.

Hare you heard of a squared circle duplex cancel? This is one of several interesting uses of the Moose Jaw squared circle cancel described by Brian Copeland.

Aaron Gulliver reports on strikes of the type 1 squared circle hammer from Aldergrove, BC, and Beeton, ON. There are also reports and updates from several other towns.

The newsletter has a memorial to Joe Smith, who passed away on 3 October 2023. He was Chairman of the Squared Circle Study Group from September 1997 until his death.

View the newsletters of the Squared Circle Study Group.

The Perfin Study Group has published the February issue of its newsletter, BNA Perforator (No. 170).

The Study Group celebrates its 70th anniversary with an article by Jim Graham and Russell D. Sampson recounting the Group's history and accomplishments.

In advance of the next update of the Perfin Handbook, the editors are searching for confirmation of perfins on the 2¢ Admiral stamp with hairlines and on Admiral booklet stamps.

Russell D. Sampson analyzes the effects on perfin holes when perforating several sheets of stamps stacked together. Are there differences in the holes between the top and bottom sheets? If so, how do they differ?

View the newsletters of the Perfin Study Group.

BNAPS has published The Story behind Canada’s Caricature and Landscape Issues by Larry Margetish, edited by Gray Scrimgeour and Brian Plain.

The book examines all aspects of the Caricature and Landscape issues, which replaced the 1967 Centennial definitives.

The book also discusses the mail handling innovations introduced during the period that the defintives were current. During that period, postal codes were introduced, fluorescent barcoding on envelopes began, and many postal rate changes were implemented.

View the latest BNAPS books

Many years ago, the Perfin Study Group published a comprehensive handbook on Canadian perfins in English and French. The Study Group posted the handbook on the website, and updates it periodically.

The web pages for the English and French editions of the handbook were redesigned recently to make them easier to navigate.

View the Perfin Handbook

Russell D. Sampson has compiled an index to articles on Canadian perfins published in BNA Perforator, the newsletter of the Perfin Study Group, and several other newsletters and journals.

The index is divided into two main sections:
1. A subject index
2. An author and contributor index

The index is available as a PDF file.

View the perfin index. Scroll down to "Other resources and references" or click the "Perfin Index" button at the top right.

The awards won by BNAPS members for BNA exhibits and for non-exhibit awards between October and December 2023 are posted along with a year-end summary.

The results for 2023 show encouraging signs that exhibitions are recovering from the COVID pandemic.

Thanks to Adri Veenstra for compiling the listing.

View the 2023 BNA exhibit awards and the non-exhibit awards

Topics Q1 has been delivered and contains an Exhibit Entry form. Please make you entry on the website as opposed to mailing in a form.

BNAPEX 2024

The Squared Circle Study Group updated the 6th edition of the Squared Circle Postmarks of Canada handbook. The December 2023 update replaces all the sections of the October 2022 update.

The Handbook lists the squared circle postmarks by hammer type and province. Each section is published as a separate PDF file.

View the new ORE contributions

Wayne Smith updated three of his censuses:

Census of Large Queen Covers by Rates, End of 2023 update
Census of 1868 Large Queen covers, over 8,000 of them, sorted by postal rate and destination. 175 covers added since the end-of-2021 update.

British Columbia Numeral Grid Cancel Census, January 2024 update
Census of numeral grid cancels, 407 on cover and 2,981 off cover, used by the colonies of British Columbia and Vancouver Island. 9 covers and 208 cancels were added since the initial census release in September 2020.

New Brunswick Numeral Grid Cancel Census, January 2024 update
Census of 1,066 numeral grid cancels on cover and 2,367 off-cover. 73 new covers and 243 off-cover cancels were added since the initial census release in April 2021.

View the updated censuses

The January issue (No. 33) of Dots and Scratches, the newsletter of the Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties Study Group, is online.

John Breukelaar continues his study of plate flaws on the Nova Scotia 1860 Queen Victoria 8½ cent stamp.

Michael D. Smith and Jim Jung discuss a re-entered printer's imprint on pane B of the Three Pence Beaver and the plate flaws found on the three stamps below the imprint.

Jim Jung describes the Gouge flaw on the 1859 5¢ Beaver as well as features of the cover the stamp is on. According to Whitworth, the Gouge flaw exists only on State 11 at position 23. The cover is from the collection of Bill Radcliffe.

Guy Jeffery describes a peculiar "dot in a halo" flaw on the 3¢ Small Queen, and the success he has had in finding copies over the years.

Jim McCormick illustrates the "hairball" flaw and several others that have a similar appearance on the 6¢ Small Queen.

View the January issue of Dots and Scratches.

The newsletters of the First Day Covers Study Group published in 2022, Nos. 49 and 50, are posted on the BNAPS website. These were the last newsletters published by interim editor Gary Dickinson. The Study Group is looking for a new editor. If you have an interest in first day covers, consider volunteering. Contact the Study Group Chairman, Bob Vogel (email: berlinb@csolve.net).

Issue No. 50 consists of an index to issues 1 to 49. Gary Dickinson compiled the index.

View the newsletters and index.

14 newsletters from 4 study groups were posted recently. The year of publication, study group, and number of issues are listed below:

â–º 2018 Large and Small Queens - 1 issue
â–º 2018 Military Mail - 4 issues
â–º 2021 Postal Stationery - 5 issues
â–º 2018 Revenue - 4 issues

The Large and Small Queens, Military Mail, and Revenue study groups have requested a delay of five years between publication of their newsletters and posting on the website.

At its BNAPEX 2023 Halifax meeting, the Postal Stationery Study Group decided to reduce the publication delay from five to two years. Last October, the newsletters published in 2018-2020 were posted. The five issues published in 2021 are now posted.

Earlier this year, the Railway Post Office Study Group also reduced the publication delay. Its newsletters published between 2019 and 2022 (16 issues) were put online several days ago.

Several other study groups have no delay period. Their newsletters were posted immediately upon publication in 2023. The study groups include:

â–º Air Mail - 1 issue
â–º British Columbia Postal History - 4 issues
â–º Fancy Cancel and Miscellaneous Markings - 2 issues
â–º Map Stamp - 1 issue
â–º Newfoundland - 4 issues (newsletter); 10 issues (news bulletin)
â–º Pence-Cents Era - 4 issues
â–º Perfin - 5 issues
â–º Re-entries and Constant Plate Varieties - 2 issues
â–º Squared Circle Cancels - 6 issues

The King George VI Study Group posts its newsletters on the BNAPS website immediately upon publication. Access to the newsletters published within the last two years is available to all BNAPS members, not just Study Group members. Issues older than two years are accessible to all viewers. In 2021, one issue was published. It is now accessible to all.

These newsletters are an invaluable resource, especially for those collecting the subjects covered by the Study Groups. Consider joining the study groups catering to your collecting interests and contributing to their newsletters.

View the study group newsletters

The January news bulletin of the Newfoundland Study Group touches on several topics.

Brian Damien describes the index to the Newfoundland Newsletter he has compiled. He will provide details at the Study Group Zoom meeting on Saturday, 20 January.

Jean-Claude Vasseur comments on a postcard shown by Gareth Williams in the November 2023 issue of the news bulletin. Was it posted by a Balbo crew member?

Earl Noss illustrates a constant plate flaw on the 1910 lithographed John Guy issue 15¢ value, and wonders if anyone knows its position.

Editor Malcolm Back previews an article to appear in the newsletter on a fine collection of Waterlow & Sons Ltd. progressive proofs and printer’s file examples of the 1941-1944 Resources issue from scans provided by Bill Coates.

View the January news bulletin (scroll down to "Study Group News" near the bottom of the page)

The RPO Study Group recently reduced the delay between publication of its newsletter and posting it on the website from five to two years. As a result, all the newsletters published between 2019 and 2022 have been posted, and are available online. That's 16 issues.

In addition, several web pages devoted to the Study Group have been redesigned. Besides links to newsletters and videos, the pages provide information about the Study Group, list RPO and TPO resources, and explore some of the history of the Post Office railway mail service.

View the newsletters and the RPO Study Group web pages.

The first newsletter posted in 2024 comes from the Newfoundland Study Group. It is issue No. 194. Among its contents:

â–º  John M. Walsh explores the differences in size found on the 1857, 1860 and 1861 Pence Issue 1d, 3d and 5d.

â–º  Klaus Wehlt illustrates format and usage varieties on early Newfoundland postcards.

â–º  Earl Noss discusses plate flaws on two stamps, and requests help in plating one of them.

â–º  From Blair Ashford comes a cover with previously unknown marking, "Shortpaid Postage/Postage Due ___ Cents/Gander, Nfld"

â–º  In the context of BNAPEX 2024 Kingston, Chris Hargreaves has a one-page display describing a cover sent by air mail in 1921 from St. John's to Kingston, ON.

View the newsletter.

On 1 January, eight BNAPS members became Emeritus members, having been with BNAPS for the past 40 consecutive years.

View the list of Emeritus members