This illustrated cover (front only) has intrigued me for eleven years on account of the unusual names of both the sending and reception companies, the quality of the illustration, the ‘socked on nose’ clarity of the cancellations and the resistance of the cover to meaningful research. The breakthrough occurred after an email to the Walkerton Branch Library, where the research cost was a princely sum of two Canadian dollars. The
This attractive advertising cover was posted at the airmail rate of 1/6d with ASC#140 6d brown kookaburra and ASC#141 1/- green lyre bird, postmarked 1 AIR MAIL 1/ 530P20NO36/ BRISBANE/ QLD. It was addressed to Leeds, Yorkshire, England and there was no postmark on the reverse. All space was utilised on the front and reverse, and everything pertained to advertising matter, except for the blue BY AIR MAIL/ PAR AVION
A fairly ordinary looking newspaper wrapper introduced me to an extraordinary man with many facets to his life: apothecary, bankrupt convict, advertising genius, quack, patent medicine merchant and philanthropist. My interest was sparked by 2 newspaper wrappers that appeared on eBay auctions, and little did I suspect where my research would take me. The first wrapper was an example of the 1885-99 ½d Fergusson & Mitchell Victorian wrapper that was
The cover is illustrated on the front and reverse and was sent from Trewhella Bros. Pty. Ltd., Trentham Victoria; it bears the 1d green Queen Elizabeth stamp perf. 15×14 issued on 1.8.38 and it is postmarked TRENTHAM/ 20 AU41/ VIC. It was addressed to Messrs E. Payne & Sons, Archie’s Creek (Victoria) which is 7 km NW of Wonthaggi. The regular rate at that time for letters within Australia was
The cover is simply addressed to Mr. G.A. Knobel, Maindample (Victoria) and the lilac ‘TWO PENCE’ QE stamp of Victoria is cancelled with a duplex MELBOURNE/ 2K/ FE 25/ 70 with a VICTORIA obliterator and it is a lead-in to two interesting men, both of whom were unusually difficult to research, particularly Gustav Adolph Knobel, inventor of Maindample, near Malvern, Victoria (Figure 1). The advertisement on the reverse was much
This advertising cover brings back early memories in Sydney for I went into their Hunter Street store many years ago to buy freshly ground peanut butter. The cover was posted from Sydney on 12 July 1917 with a roller cancel and there is also a roller cancel of a Melbourne reception postmark on the red N.S.W. 1d ‘Shield’ stamp. The green advertisement describes the company as manufacturers, importers, exporters of
The cover has an advertisement for the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Victoria with a Colonial emblem of an assortment of mimosa, fern and two other plants, and the headquarter’s address of 138 & 140 Flinders Street, Melbourne. It has the pink Victorian ½d and lilac 2d stamps, and is postmarked MELBOURNE/ 17 ( )/ MY 6/ 98. It is addressed to Worcester, Mass U.S.A. (Figure 1). The Woman’s Christian
Advertising covers are very popular with collectors and come in many forms, some as simple as little more than the name and address of an important company or a significant hotel. The most exciting ones are profusely illustrated on the front and reverse and colorful ones can be quite extravagant in their design. Less common ones (at least in my own limited experience) advertise an event in an artistic field
This unassuming NSW 1d pink Queen Victoria mint Post Card reveals a story of Melbourne’s past (late 1800’s). The front has not been illustrated, but the reverse shows it is from The Australian Widows’ Fund, Life Assurance Society Limited, with Offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane & Launceston. “Notice is hereby given that an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of the Society will be held at the Society’s head
The illustrated cover was for MacRobertson Manufacturing Confectioner, Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Ballarat, Bendigo and it was franked with the red 2d and green 1d KGV Head stamps cancelled with FITZROY/ 9 AP 36/ VICTORIA. It was addressed to The Package Paper Company, Holyoke, Massachusetts, U.S.A. The reverse was not seen (Figure 1). MacPherson Robertson, industrialist and philanthropist, was born on 6 September 1859 at Ballarat, Victoria, eldest of