THE LIGHTHOUSE
The Eastbourne & South Downs PSNewsletter
Editor: John Wright, 12 Milchester House, Staveley Road, Meads, Eastbourne, BN20 7JX.
No. 28May 2011
Views expressed in this Newsletter are not necessarily those of the Officers or Committee
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ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING - Thursday 9th June 2011
Just a reminder of this important meeting. All Officers and Committee members are elected at the A.G.M. for a term of one year. Nominations, duly proposed and seconded, should be with the Hon. Secretary at least 21 days prior to the A.G.M. (i.e. by 19th May).
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75th Anniversary - 6th October 2011
Did you know that the Society was founded on 6th October 1936? On 6th October 2011, a Thursday, the Committee is arranging a meal to celebrate this important milestone instead of the usual meeting. To obtain the best deal, the venue might be just outside Eastbourne, and the Committee is trying to keep the cost per head to about £15 (exclusive of wine) to enable the maximum number of members to attend. If transport is a problem, please do not reject the idea but speak to a member of the Committee as the Secretary is sure arrangements can be made. Please come and join us - if not, you may miss an exciting talk from the envisaged guest.
jl
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E & S D P S STAMP FAIR - Saturday 26th November 2011
Victoria Baptist Church Hall, Eldon Road, has been booked for the above to promote the Society. There is room for 10 dealers, which should give a wide choice of stamps and postal history. Refreshments will be available. To make this event a success, we need a willing band of volunteers to set up and dismantle the tables; marshal the car park; and help in the kitchen. Please speak to Graham Little if you can spare all day or even just the odd hour - the more volunteers the easier the task and this will give everyone the chance to visit the dealers.
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SOUTH DOWNS POSTCARD CLUB FAIR - Wednesday 11th May 2011
Mentioned as their Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer (and a number of others) are also members of E&SDPS. The Fair, with 10+ dealers, is at Westham Village Hall, Peelings Lane, Westham from 5:30 pm - 9:30 pm. Refreshments, raffle, free car park, free admission. Should be a good show for all who collect postcards or are interested in starting a collection.
jmw
CHINESE INVESTORS PUSH THE ENVELOPE(Daily Telegraph. 5th April 2011)
A Chinese company has placed an order for 10,000 1d blacks with Stanley Gibbons, causing the company considerable problems as it normally sells about 100 in any year!
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THE LOVES OF STANLEY GIBBONS
(Edward) Stanley Gibbons was born in Plymouth in 1840, the same year that the first adhesive postage stamp appeared. After a short time as a junior clerk in Plymouth's Naval Bank, it is probably well-known that he then worked in his father's pharmacy, where he was allowed to set up a stamp counter. This business expanded and, in 1863, Stanley bought a kitbag full of rare Cape of Good Hope triangulars from two sailors who had won them in a raffle. These cost £5, and Stanley later estimated that he sold them for £5,000 (£37,000 in today's terms).
In 1872 Stanley married Matilda Woon, a clergyman's daughter, who died 5 years later of "marasmus", a wasting disease similar to anorexia. Wife no. 2, 8 years later, was Maggie Casey his assistant and housemaid who died in 1899 of cirrhosis, and wife no. 3, a few years later, was Georgina who died overseas in 1905 (Stanley had been doing a good deal of travelling since retiring in 1890). In October 1905, Stanley (now 65 and not letting the grass grow under his feet), married no.4, 27-year-old Bertha Barth who is believed to have died of cancer of the liver in hospital in Ceylon. Shortly after this, Stanley returned home and married no. 5, Sophia Crofts, who survived him.
Stanley died in 1913, allegedly at his nephew's flat just off Baker Street. It was rumoured that in fact he had died "in the arms of a lover" at the Savoy Hotel, the body having been moved to cover up the scandal.
(The above is a much abridged version of the article on pages 152-155 entitled "In search of Stanley" in the January British Philatelic Bulletin).
REVIEW . . . .(photographs by Martyn Fish)
20th January Pat and Mike Clark took us on a 4½ month Whistle Stop Tour of the World which started in 1989 when they sold their house and before they bought the new one. They went to the bottom of the Grand Canyon (very cold at the top, hot at the bottom with a vertical drop of 1 mile (necessary to book 9 months ahead!); then Hawaii; New Zealand (bus drivers much more friendly than in Hawaii, and mail delivered from the moving bus); Peru; Australia (all boats on strike, so bus again); a tuk tuk in Thailand (dreadful but oh-so-cheap accommodation); India (all day to change a $50 note, and visits to orphanages in one of which a blind child did washing for 40 children, then correctly sorted it by scent). A card (1889) was shown inviting recipient to "a formal hanging 2:00 p.m., Holbrook, Arizona"; then a story of a heavily pregnant woman who tried unsuccessfully to pick-pocket a watch on a bus in Egypt, was caught, frog-marched to a police station but not charged until she had delivered; China (tour guides have to have degrees and to be fluent in English).
A flight round Mt. McKinley resulted in a rough landing on a grass field; 3 coach trips from Heathfield College to Venice with 14 year olds; 2 weeks in Namibia (Pat had a foot broken by a pedal cyclist); trip to a desert where their driver stopped to pick up a dartling beetle which he put in a bottle and later fed to a chameleon; a cruise to the Norwegian Fjords; and many other countries. All well illustrated with postcards (mainly early), covers, and stamps - a most enthralling tour, but not one which I would have chosen to make!
jmw
27th JanuaryIn a change to the advertised topic, I opened my display on Canada (what else) with 5 Montreal st line pmks, 1783-99, and followed with a twice fwded 1829 letter from Hull and an interprovincial from Quebec to Halifax, also 1829, where 1d delivery charge was made. 2 stampless drop letters from 1851 came next, and then the first, imperf, stamps of 1851,52 and later imperfs. Canada went decimal in 1859 and a page of the 1859 1c, and a page of the 10c were shown, together with a Weekly Commercial Report and 2 short paid items (1863, 64). The "Large Queens" started in 1868 and the 1c redbrown, 3c redbrown and 1c yellow, together with 2 pages of shades of the 6c were seen. 2 pages of lovely shades of the 10c "Small Queen" were followed by a number of regd covers, and then a few Money Letters (one of which was rated 4N8, of weight 4 oz, which had contained 171 enclosures!). Then 2 more regd covers, one with 2 Registered Letter Stamps, one with 4, and the Widowed Queens of 1893. Leading the way with the 1897 Diamond Jubilees were 1c - 5c plate proofs in comer blocks of 6, then the Diamond Jubilee set and several covers. A rare AR form (1908, to Numberg) followed and then KGV Admirals (sheet and coil stamps, together with booklet panes and complete booklets). Next came some Cross Border (Canada - United States) mail, 1817 - 1850, of interest as mail from this period had both Canadian and U S rates. Also shown were "Scroll", "Arch & Maple Leaf", Medallion" and "Dated Die" booklets and panes (could you see the tiny hidden date on the last group?). A rare 10c "Mufti" die proof was seen and the "chewing gum" booklets & panes from the mid-late 1940s. The display concluded with "Karsh" coils, the handsome Fruit & Trees definitives (1991-95), recent coils and booklets (including a fake) and a number of recent commemoratives. A very varied display.
jmw
2ndFebruary3 very good entries for the Postal History Competition saw Michael Farrant placed 1st with German East Africa, World War I, John Wright 2nd with Mail from Canada to the United States, 1842-1844, and BillHobbs 3rd with Wurttemberg.
The second half consisted of Airmails, opened by Mike Wyatt, Lithuaniato various countries and labels in a variety of colours - we also had some detail about Junkers, builders of most of the planes. John Wright had Canada 1928-1980 to Switzerland, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, Bulawayo, Malta, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, and Panama. Ken Santer showed Brunei 1931 RAF training flights and wartime temporary cancels and labels; North Borneo first airmail to Europe and Dutch incoming mail; and Hong Kong 1931, 35 and 37,1926 Borneo air survey, 1929 Sarawak govt flight (crashed, salvaged mail shipped on); to Singapore to connect with Imperial Airways; route changed when Italy entered WWII, going all round the globe. Bill Hobbs had mainly Germany - 1934 Berlin Inst of Aeronautics to England; 1936 to Bucharest; Zeppelin to Montevideo; 1942 Innsbruck to Dublin (censored in Germany, flown to Lisbon, intercepted by British and censored again); 1942 Roumania to Westphalia double censored; 1947 Lufthansa full set on 2 covers; various first flights and special usages. Graham Little had an "all for sale" selection, including Seychelles with extra charge; Canal Zone to Washington; and censored covers. Nigel Steer had a miscellany -Chile; Polar 1st Flight, Norway censored just prior to invasion; Austrian balloon flight; and 2 Olympic items (one from a journalist pointing out a typo in the name of a competitor!).
sfg
10th FebruaryAn "Egg Cup" display by Kevin Dillistone who showed us some of his large (but still growing) collection of Safety at Sea. Rough seas, both in this country and overseas, began the show, followed by ships in rough seas and shipwrecks (these either natural or caused by wreckers, particularly active in Sussex and Cornwall). There were many wrecks off the coast of Sussex, that of the Amsterdamoff Hastings being part visible at low tide. Cards were seen of all these subjects. The earliest record of Coastguards was 1698, the earliest Lighthouse in GB being that at Dover Castle - we then went on a tour (profusely illustrated) by cards of GB Lighthouses, most of which are now automatically lit from Norwich. Some good Channel Islands material (stamp and postcard) was seen - not all L-houses are still used as such, some being converted (notably in the U. S.) for Bed & Breakfast use! This tour of GB mentioned the Scarborough L-house, damaged by German shelling in 1914 but not repaired until 1931 through lack of funds. We also went to Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Holland, France, Spain, Malta, Russia (just stamps here), Greece, Ceylon,
Singapore, Fiji, Japan, China (stamps), Capetown, New Zealand, Australia, Cuba (Spanish design to 1902, then U. S. and manned by the military), USA, Canada, and Bermuda. Did we all know the Statue of Liberty was a L-house, or that if you wish to go to Alcatraz you must book 2 months ahead? Then Lightships, including German and the Royal Sovereign off Eastbourne (now a platform) Lifeboats followed - rowed at first, then sailing, with different sizes for the distance to be travelled. The display concluded with a brief look at L-Memorials, L-Stations, L-Jackets, L-buoys, tugs and foghorns. Mostly postcards, and a most impressive collection with the commentary delivered in enthusiastic style. Thank you, Kevin.
jmw
15th FebruaryA Society visit to. Heathfield (the first such for a number of years). Richard Robbins showed Belgium - Railway stamps and advertising labels attached to definitives; Lionel Jones presented the postal history of Uckfield, Heathfield and the surrounding area; Bill Hobbs had the Allied Occupation of Germany following the end of WWII; and Graham Little gave Covers and slogan pmks on GB King George VI. A good attendance by our hosts who had an enjoyable afternoon as did our members.
gl
3rd MarchThe excellent attendance to see Ron Burnand his display of Tristan da Cunha was perhaps explained by members hoping to see a fine show - if this was the case, all went away having had their expectations fully satisfied. Ron opened by telling us that Tristan was the most lonely island in the world, too small for a 'plane to land, and with a circumference of only 33 miles. It was discovered by Tristao da Cunha in 1506 and first appeared on a map in 1509: the island is an excellent calling place for fresh water and has wonderful crayfish. Even now, there are only 7 family names on the island. Although there is much mail in the archives of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, this is exceptionally unlikely ever to come on the market, and there are only 6-8 covers prior to 1906 in private hands. The first cachet was produced in 1906, the second in 1918, and a third used in London on cut-outs from postal stationery before being sent to Tristan: other cachets (including ships') were also seen. Sometimes a padre going home on leave took the cachet with him, leading to m/s marks! The first petition for the production of postage stamps was made in 1925, but it took further approaches before the first stamps were issued in 1952. Amongst other gems we saw a letter to a relative of Lewis Carroll (his brother was an SPG padre on the island). Fearing interference from the Germans, HMS Milford went to Tristan in 1938 to proclaim the islands British Territory. Allan Crawford, later well known to Ron, worked his way on a Norwegian expedition (1937-8) as a mapmaker with no experience but produced good maps.
As there was no PO on the island until 1952, the stamps carried by any ship were valid on
mail posted in that ship's mailbox. Additionally, GB and South Africa agreed that mail posted to those countries without stamps would be charged single letter rate only on delivery. Allan Crawford produced designs for stamps with the currency being "potatoes". We were shown postcards, photocopies of postcards, photographs, WW2 mail (GB and SA troops were put on Tristan in 1942 under the code name of "Job 9") and we saw an armband of the TDV - Tristan Defence Volunteers (equivalent to our Home Guard) and so much more. Impossible to do this display justice ..... and this is only the story to 1952! Very many thanks, Ron.
jmw
10th MarchThe Letters W, X, Y, Z evening was opened by Murray Figgins with Zimbabwe, 1965-1978, on 23 sheets, covers some with S Rhodesia stamps not recognised. Next, Brian Stalker with Welland Railway, built 1859 roughly along the line of the 1829 canal near the Niagara Falls - a beautifully presented show with maps, PS, p/c, and covers one of which contained a letter home from a navvy complaining about the conditions under which he worked. Richard Robbins started with 7 sheets of Zambia (1964-70), Zanzibar (8 sheets, 1952-67) and then moved to West Berlin (17 sheets) opening with black and red opts on Deutsche Post, building set, and the 3 "Bell" sets. Mike Clark couldn't find his "X" sheets, so we saw Waders, Warthogs, Whales, Woodpeckers, Yugoslavia, Zebras and Zoo animals on 32 sheets. Ken Santer put up Western Australia (a pair of early black swan), Fiscals used for postage, Wei Hai Wei and Yokohama cancels on Hong Kong stamps, Natal used in Zululand and GB PS used in Zululand. Ken also had a sheet of Xmas seals for British Forces in Europe and PS from Transvaal optd Zuid Afrika. Alan Parsons told us that mail from Zanzibar was initially picked up by British ships - we saw two covers with what appeared to have mutilated duplex cancels (Gibbons disagree, but may very well be wrong!), a telegram envelope, a number of covers with Z in bars, and a registered cover with 14 x India ½anna stamps. Peter Burridge closed the first half with (issued 8th March) the GB "Magical Realms" set - Witches and Wizards.
David Haigh, on 25 sheets, showed part of his large collection of Yerushalayim or Zion (take your pick!) a travel guide in stamps and p/c including Temple Mount, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Mount of Olives, Via Dolorosa (Stations of the Cross -14 stamps from Nicaragua), Yad Vasham, etc. John Wright had Canada: 1915 War Tax including a good piece, War Effort (2nd War) with a few booklets and coils, and Wildings with coils and the phosphor treated stamps for the SEFACAN machine which SEgregated, FAced and CANcelled mail. Evelyn Hutchins showed Zambia from its early days as British SA Company through to the Federation of Rhodesia & Nyasaland, some Southern Rhodesia, and then Zimbabwe. Jennie Little put up B.I.O.T., with 15 sheets of Wildlife on Wing and Water. (B.I.O.T. consists of 55 islands of which the largest is Diego Garcia the natives of which have been disgracefully treated by the U.K.). Sarah Griffin had WallisFutuna, Western Australia, Yemen and Yugoslavia (opts on Hungary). Graham Little showed part of a collection of West Berlin, 1945-1973 on 45 sheets, attractive stamps, well written-up. Good to see so many taking part in this Members' evening.
jmw
17th MarchThere were 3 good entries for the Nancy Gee Open Competition, Bill Hobbs taking 3rd place with Bohemia & Moravia, Brian Stalker placed 2nd with Canada's Dominion Atlantic Railway, and Angela Reilly in top position with her Hotel Mail.