New Hampshire’s Purgatory Post earlier this month continued its series of stamps commemorating the steamships of Lake Winnipesaukee with the release of a new stamp picturing the Chocorua. The 3-sola design in green and black was issued September 13, 2022.
Purgatory Post 3-sola Chocorua stamp
The ship, originally christened the Dover, made its first voyage on August 18, 1852, but within a few years the vessel was being outpaced by the Lady of the Lake.1Dover’s owners rebuilt their steamship, lengthening it and renaming it Chocorua, a name shared by a local mountain and originally a native chief.2
Chocorua continued operating until it was replaced by the faster Mount Washington in 1872, and three years later, Chocorua was dismantled.3
Feeding America business reply envelope goes all orange
Yet another business reply envelope with preprinted stamp-sized images has arrived in my mail box! The latest fundraising mailing I received from Feeding America contained an orange envelope with images bearing fruit—perhaps apples or peaches though the artwork is too small for me to say for sure—a vase containing flowers, and a tree-lined stream or pond.
Feeding America business reply envelope bearing three stamp-sized designs picturing fruit, flowers, and a tree-lined stream or pond
In case you missed it, this is the second BRE with preprinted images on it that I’ve received from Feeding America; the first showed up in the spring.
I’m still not sure exactly how to categorize this sort of thing. Ephemera, to be sure; these business reply envelopes were obviously not intended to be collected. But cinderellas? Perhaps. Or maybe cinderella postal stationery since the designs are printed directly on the envelope itself rather than being distinct lables affixed to it.
Bat’s Private Post memorializes Queen Elizabeth II
For me—and probably for a lot of other people—Queen Elizabeth II was always the Queen of England. I know that history says otherwise, but she had been on the throne for over three decades before I was even born. No human lives forever, but it’s still strange to think that she is no longer the monarch.
Beverly Hills-based Bat’s Private Post was to the best of my knowledge the first stamp producer to release a Queen Elizabeth memorial stamp. Bat’s issued a 65¢ stamp picturing the Queen on September 8, the same day she died.
Bat’s Private Post Queen Elizabeth II stamp on postcard
A copy of the new stamp is tied to the postcard pictured above by a September 8 Bat’s Private Post postmark and a Los Angeles, California, machine cancellation dated September 9.
The 65¢ denomination covers Bat’s Private Post’s normal rate for a domestic letter for which Bat’s supplies United States postage. In the pictured usage, it overpays the normal Bat’s Private Post postcard rate of 49¢, but considering the quick turnaround required to prepare and release this stamp, unorthodox uses might almost be expected.
Navigators business reply envelope bears baskets of apples
The most recent business reply envelope to come into my possession this week was in a mailing addressed not to me, but to my wife.
The envelope was part of a fundraising pleas from Navigators, and has three preprinted stamp-sized images picturing a basket of apples.
Navigators business reply envelope
Interestingly, although the same artwork is used on all three images, the basket is larger on the first image than on the other two. The second and third images have the same artwork mirrored, but the borders are different colors. I suppose the graphic designer must have wanted to mix things up a little bit.
Bat’s Private Post commemorates Rudolph Valentino Memorial
On August 23, 2022, Bat’s Private Post in Beverly Hills, California, issued a set of five stamps commemorating the 95th Rudolph Valentino Memorial Service. The first annual service held in remembrance of Valentino (1895–1926) was conducted in 1927, exactly one year after the Hollywood legend’s death.
Bat’s Private Post 95th Rudolph Valentino Memorial Service stamps
A 5¢ stamp covering Bat’s Private Post local postage to the USPS pictures roses traditionally left at Valentino’s grave, while 49¢, 65¢, and $1 stamps all picture the actor himself. The 65¢ stamp comes in two varieties: one in purple, and one in black labeled “OFFICIAL” and valid only for use for Bat’s Private Post official business.
The 49¢ stamp covers Bat’s Private Post and USPS postage for a domestic postcard; the 65¢ stamps, for a domestic letter; and the $1.45 stamp, for an international letter or postcard.
In addition to the stamps, Bat’s Private Post issed a 49¢ postal card with an imprinted design picturing Valentino. According to a press release, copies of the postal card are being sold at $2 each, the price of which includes applicable United States postage.
Bat’s Private Post 95th Rudolph Valentino Memorial Service postal card
