Royal Reels: Gambling

Business

ARTHUR C. ROFE, SYDNEY BUSINESS MAN, HERITAGE HOUSE, CANDILGY

The New South Wales Letter Card with a printed red 1½d stamp was cancelled with the barred numeral ‘1897′ and there was a circular cancel alongside of BULLI RY STN / OC 19/1897 ,which confirmed the veracity of the numeral. It was addressed to Mrs. A.C. Rofe, Livingstone Road, Petersham (N.S.W., Sydney) (Figure 1). The other half of the card had a transit postmark of SYDNEY/ OC 19/ U/ 97/ 28 and

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ALSTON, B.H., MELBOURNE TOBACCONIST, IMPORTER HAVANA CIGARS & PHILATELIST

More than one year ago the first cover was seen addressed to B.H. Alston in Melbourne, and this was followed in short order by an interesting letter which Alston wrote to Dr. Max Nordau, totally irrelevant to this cover, dated 30 years later.   Then further research was quite unrewarding and my occasional return to researching Alston produced no more information.  The cover was put on the ‘back burner’ and a

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ALEXANDER W. SANDFORD, MERCHANT & S. A. LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

The printed-to-private-order window envelope had an advertisement for A.W. Sandford & Co., Limited, Merchants, Dairy and Refrigeration Engineers, Grenfell Street, Adelaide, and the red embossed 2½d KGVI head stamp was postmarked with a roller slogan ‘PREVENT/ BUSH FIRES’ and a circular ADELAIDE/ 10-PM/ 21 DEC/ 1948/ SOUTH AUST. cancel (Figure 1). The reverse has ‘Britain Buys Our Butter/ Lister/ British Built/ Separators/ Fitted With Staybrite/ Steel Discs and Ball-Bearings/ A.W.

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ALEXANDER THOMSON & THOMAS MUST, PARK HILL, HAMILTON VICTORIA

The cover is addressed to Alexander Thomson Esq, Park Hill, Hamilton and has a rose 4d ‘Laureate’ stamp cancelled with the BN ‘8′ of Portland, Victoria. (Figure 1). The reverse has an originating unframed oval of PORTLAND/ JU 18/ 63/ VICTORIA and a destination unframed oval of HAMILTON/ JU 19/ 63/ VICTORIA and the flap has an albino imprint of THOMAS MUST/ VICTORIA/ PORTLAND (Figure 2). Alexander Thomson was born

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CAPTAIN JOSEPH JAMES of GEORGE TOWN, VAN DIEMENS LAND 1786-1844

Two entires were available at auction, one addressed to the merchant Captain Joseph James and the other to his daughter Frances, one and a half years apart, during which time the Captain had died, and both were sent from the same town, Newnham, Gloucestershire in England. The first was sent from NEWNHAM/ AP 28/ 1843 and it has a red ‘tombstone’ cancel PAID/ 29 AP29/ 1843 as well as a

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CAPTAIN JOHN BISHOP, STOREKEEPER PORT LINCOLN, SOUTH AUSTRALIA

A series of nine covers addressed to the same person were seen over the period of 1856-1872, and a selection of these will be presented. Three of the earlier covers were addressed him as Captain in recognition of his sea-going life prior to his arrival in Australia in 1839, well before the arrival of the first cover. The first was simply addressed to Captn. Bishop, Port Lincoln. The imperforate pair

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CAPT. RONALD CAMPBELL, SQUATTER, BOMBALA STATION, MONARO N.S.W.

The cover has a strip of three brown-lilac De La Rue ‘TWO PENCE’ stamps of Victoria canceled by MELBOURNE/ 7V/ MY 5/ 70 with the duplex VICTORIA obliterator and there is a ms ‘per Overland Route’at top left. It was addressed to Ronald Campbell Esq., Bombala Station, New South Wales (Figure 1). The reverse clearly shows the long and out-of-way routing of the 1870 ‘Overland Route’ from Melbourne (May 5)

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BUTTERWORTH BROTHERS CO., MERCHANTS, CASTLEMAINE, VICTORIA & N.Z.

The folded 1856 ‘entire’ letter is franked with the QV 4d rose Victorian pair of the ‘Emblems’ stamps on wove paper (SG 83), tied by the ‘killer’ barred numeral ‘1′ of Melbourne, and it is addressed to Messrs Butterworth Bros., Merchants, Castlemaine (Figure 1). The red sealing wax is accompanied by an originating MELBOURNE/ D/ SEP 3/ S9 as well as an arrival postmark in September at Castlemaine, Victoria (Figure

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BURNS PHILP & CO., SYDNEY to W.H. GILLARD& CO., HAMILTON, CANADA

This unexciting cover is an example of trade between two large companies, primarily involved in food distribution, but with extensive additional interests, in Australia and Canada in the early 1900’s. It was addressed to Messrs W.H. Gillard & Co., Wholesale Grocers etc., Hamilton, Canada. The blue 2½d QV stamp of N.S.W. was cancelled with a duplex THE EXCHANGE/ MR 5/ 11-15-AM/ 05/ N.S.W, with the barred numeral ‘1134′ of the

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BREWERS’ JOURNAL, BAVARIAN HOPS & KALGOORLIE BREWING & ICE, CO.

The three items in the heading are tied together by three different, but related covers one each from New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, over the period of 1892 to 1905. The N.S.W. cover has a black double circle inscribed Australian Brewery & Wine & Spirit Company Limited with the Emu and Kangaroo on the side of a shield, with the motto ‘Advance Australia’, as well as a readdress

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