The British North America Philatelic Society, Ltd
Publicity Office - Dean Mario

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For immediate release
October 14, 2004

The British North America Philatelic Society, Ltd. (BNAPS) is pleased to announce the opening of the Horace W. Harrison Online Library at https://bnaps.org/hhl/hhl-index.php and the immediate availability of its widely respected, award winning journal BNA Topics. All issues of the journal from volume 1 (1944) through volume 56 (1999) are available, in an online facsimile edition, to all interested parties with no fees, passwords or registrations required. And next year (and in each succeeding year) a new volume of the journal will be added to the website. The most recent five years of the journal are available to Society members in print form. Information about joining the Society is available at the website (listed above) and at the Society's home page at https://bnaps.org.

The Cumulative Index to BNA Topics compiled by P. Charles Livermore is being prepared as an online searchable index of Topics to facilitate finding specific information and articles. In keeping with the educational initiatives of the Society, the index will also be available at no charge.

This contribution by BNAPS to the philatelic community is made possible, in part, by a generous bequest from Horace W. Harrison, a long time member of the Society and its President at the time of his death in 2002. The Library is in keeping both with Mr. Harrison's keen interest in the literature of British North America and BNAPS' long dedication to bringing to the philatelic community the best in BNA literature.

A facsimile of each issue of BNA Topics can be read online or downloaded as a pdf file. Individuals who do not have a pdf reader can download one at no charge at https://www.adobe.com.

Founded in 1944, the British North America Philatelic Society Ltd. (BNAPS) is an international non-profit organization devoted to the collecting and study of the stamps, postal markings, and postal history of Canada and its pre-Confederation colonies. While the majority of its members come from Canada and the United States, approximately ten percent come from other countries around the globe.

A major feature of the Society is its Study Group program. Study group interests range from the stamps of the colonial period to the most modern of issues, cancellations from the fancy cancels of the late Victorian era through squared circles and precancels to slogans and inkjets, postal history from the stampless period to the computerized era, military mail, registration mail and on and on. And new study groups are created as new interests develop. The Study Groups offer programs at the annual conference presenting an opportunity for members to meet each other face to face. The newsletters published by each of the Study Groups offer members another important avenue for sharing ideas and new discoveries.

BNAPS has held an annual conference every year since 1949 in cities across Canada and the United States. Highlights of each convention include top-notch BNA exhibits by members, well-stocked BNA dealers, seminars, informal social events and special spouse activities for non-collecting partners. The annual convention provides an opportunity to greet old friends and discover new friends who share an enthusiasm for BNA philately.

Regional Groups exist in many areas in both the United States and Canada. Members who are unable to attend the annual conference can meet in their local communities and share many of the same philatelic discussions and fellowship opportunities offered by the annual convention.

The BNAPS publishing program regularly produces handbooks, catalogs and reproductions of members' award winning exhibits to further its educational objective of expanding the understanding of BNA philately. BNAPS books are available to members at significant discounts from the retail price. Editorial assistance is available to BNAPS members who would like to become published authors. A full list of current offerings can be found at https://bnaps.org/books/books.php.

The online facsimile edition of BNA Topics is copyrighted by BNAPS and if material in the journal is used as a reference, the source should be acknowledged. The Table of Contents of every issue is also online. In another file, researchers will also find an index to every mention of Newfoundland stamps or postal history material found in BNA Topics.

The Horace W. Harrison Online Library was developed with the assistance of BluePhyre Technologies, a web hosting and design company founded in 1998. BluePhyre provides technical guidance and support for the website, and is developing the online search engine to be used in conjunction with the forthcoming cumulative index.

While many people were involved in bringing the online facsimile edition of BNA Topics to fruition, it was the dedication of John Walsh of Newfoundland (eastern most point in North America) and his scanning of the almost 500 issues of Topics that has allowed it to happen at this time.

More information about the Horace W. Harrison Online Library can be obtained from P. Charles Livermore at charleslivermore@hotmail.com.

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