Harry K. Charles, Jr., Ph.D. has been selected to receive the Walter W. Hopkinson Memorial Literature Award for the best article or series of articles published in The United States Specialist during 2010.  The award is given annually by the United States Stamp Society and consists of an engraved plaque and an honorarium.  The award will be presented at the Annual Meeting of the USSS in Denver in May.

Charles authored “Postal and Treasury Savings Systems,” a series of seven articles, the last five parts of which appeared in 2010, detailing the creation, history and development of the stamps, stationery and ephemera of the departments.  Articles included the Initial Stamp Design, Official Postal Savings Stamps and Stationery, War Savings Stamps, Between the World Wars, the Minuteman Series, World War II, and Savings Stamps.

The Hopkinson Memorial Literature Award selection committee consists of the winners of the award for the last three years.  The Chairman of the committee was Robert G. Rufe, the 2007 winner for his comprehensive series on “The U.S. Special Handling Issues.”  The other members were Larry S. Weiss and Gerald Nylander, 2009 joint winners for their groundbreaking series “Major New Discovery: Two Patterns of USPS Double Line Watermarks Exist.”  Weiss also won the 2008 award for his treatise “Why Collect the U.S. Washington-Franklin Heads? – A 100th Anniversary Tribute.”

The award has been given annually since 1953 in honor of Walter W. Hopkinson.  It was established by his wife, Mrs. Constance B. Hopkinson, in view of her husband’s interest in philatelic scholarship and dissemination of research and knowledge through the Society’s publications.  Hopkinson was a plate number specialist as well as a long time member and vigorous supporter of the Bureau Issue Association, as the Society was then named.

Harry’s selection as the 2010 winner is his first and makes him the 58th recipient of this prestigious award.  This work was also the subject of a presentation given by Dr. Charles at the Winton M. Blount Symposium on Postal History in Washington, DC in September, 2008.  He is also well known for his study of U.S. Postage Due issues.

A complete list of previous winners of the Award can be found on the Society’s website, www.usstamps.org.  Just click on “Feature Articles and Links” and the “Description of Awards given by the Society.”

—Robert G. Rufe
Chairman

As you know, the Society will convene its 2011 Annual Meeting at the Rocky Mountain Stamp Show in Denver, Colorado during the weekend of May 13th through the 15th.  On Saturday, May 14th, we will hold our General Membership Meeting in the early afternoon.  One of the highlights of the meeting will be the presentation of Membership Award Pins to those who, during 2011, will have attained 50, 25 and 15 years of membership.  These members are:

If you are a part of this distinguished group, why not plan on attending the meeting and receiving your pin, and the Society’s thanks, in person?  If you are unable to attend the Rocky Mountain show, you can pick up your pin at either of the two 2011 New York National Stamp Shows as well as at the APS StampShow in Columbus, Ohio in August.   tHowever, if you cannot get to any of these shows, your pin will be mailed to you after the Fall New York show.

American Philatelic Center, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania

Sponsored by American Philatelic Society – American Philatelic
Research Library and Smithsonian National Postal Museum

Theme of the Symposium: “How Commerce and Industry Shaped the Mails”

The Symposium will be held in conjunction with a philatelic exhibition hosted by the United States Stamp Society (USSS).  The USSS is a non-profit, volunteer-run association of collectors to promote the study of the philatelic output of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and postage and revenue stamped paper produced by others for use in the United States and U.S. administered areas.  Once concerned exclusively with the production of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the USSS has expanded its coverage to include all United States issues, both classic and modern, regardless of printer.

Panels will be interspersed with opportunities to view award-winning exhibitions.  On Friday evening, September 16th, there will be a reception and a keynote address.  A banquet celebrating the United States Stamp Society’s 85th anniversary will be held on Saturday evening.

Located 15 miles from State College, Pennsylvania, the American Philatelic Center is home to the 37,000-member American Philatelic Society, the largest stamp collecting organization in the nation, and the American Philatelic Research Library (APRL) dedicated to supporting and advancing postal and philatelic scholarship.

Papers

Proposals for symposium papers may be submitted either as individual papers or in panels.  Possible themes for papers include:

• Vending and Affixing – the age of order by mail
• The postal system goes to War
• Those little flying machines revolutionize the Mails
• How the mail order business necessitated the creation of the parcel post system
• Special handling stamps addressed special business needs
• Express Mail Wars: How the USPS battled Federal Express

Proceedings of the Symposium will be considered for publication by the Smithsonian Institution Press.

Deadline for proposals: May 1, 2011

Proposals should be no more than one page and be accompanied by a one-page curriculum vitae with contact information (email, phone, and address).  Please email complete proposals to the research chair.  Notification of accepted papers will be issued in mid-May.  Conference papers will be posted on the National Postal Museum website and will be considered for possible publication.  Conference co-chairs are Thomas Lera, Ken Martin and David L. Straight.

It is my pleasure to announce that Stephen Vieira of Fairhaven, MA has offered to take on the chairmanship of this study group.  Stephen has been collecting stamps since 1975 and is a member of the Fall River Philatelic Society, the Rhode Island Philatelic Society and the American Philatelic Society.  In his real world life he is the Chief Information Officer at the Community College of Rhode Island, has been married for 35 years and is the father of two.

If you have an interest in this fascinating series of U.S. stamps, please contact Stephen and let him know.

—Nick Lombardi
President

Reminder postcards were sent out in January to those of you who have not paid your dues for 2011.  If you do not respond promptly, this will be your last issue of The Specialist.  The annual dues of $25.00 (foreign members extra for postage) buys you an excellent monthly journal on U.S. philately, discounts on Society books, two free ads per year in The Specialist, and access to research papers, reprints and copies of member exhibits.  Please renew now before you forget.  You will be doing a service both to yourself and to the Society.

—Larry Ballantyne

The American Philatelic Society is offering the following courses as part of its continuing education series.  Each course is being held prior to a World-Series show and costs $195 for APS members and $295 for nonmembers.  Register prior to the early-bird deadline and receive a $15 discount.  Course hours are from 9am to 5pm local time each day with a break for lunch.  Lunch is not included in the registration fee.  To register, or for more information, go to http://www.stamps.org/Education/edu_Courses.htm.  Or contact Gretchen Moody, APS Director of Education by email or phone 814-933-3810.

Philatelic Marketplace with Clark Frazier
- March 16-17, 2011, prior to St. Louis Stamp Expo
- Registration deadline for $15 discount: February 23, 2011

Prepare to navigate the maze of valuing, buying, and selling stamps and philatelic material with Clark Frazier, APS Summer Seminar instructor since 2006.  Learn how to determine the value of philatelic collectibles — from items already in your collection to material that you’re interested in buying or selling.  Students will engage in hands-on practice of information presented.  U.S. material is primarily used with applications for the buying and selling of worldwide stamps.  Whether you are a beginner, advanced collector, have aspirations of becoming a dealer, or you are a full time dealer already, this course is for you.

Exhibiting for the Prize with Rich Drews and Tony Wawrukiewicz
- April 27-28, 2011, prior to WESTPEX in San Francisco
- Registration deadline for $15 discount: April 6, 2011

Land the big one with this two-day course!  Starting with a quick review of the basics, this course will delve into intermediate and advanced level topics of exhibiting to help exhibitors who wish to win a Grand Award or beyond, or to compete at the challenging international levels.

Students will explore how judging takes place in all the various exhibiting divisions.  They will discover what considerations ― including treatment, succinctly conveying knowledge and research, and difficulty of acquisition ― will affect award level, and gain insight into what is in the mind of judges as they make their decisions.  Drews and Wawrukiewicz, two award winning exhibitors and APS judges, will explain what separates Silver and Vermeil from Gold, and what it takes to reach the sought-after Grand Award level.  Exhibitors will be encouraged to bring their exhibits for assistance and comparison with a wide range of successful exhibits in all disciplines.

Philatelic Writing and Publishing with Robert Odenweller - June 1-2, 2011
at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum in Washington, DC, prior to NAPEX
- Registration deadline for $15 discount: May 11, 2011

From the technical aspects of writing to navigating the intricacies of publishing, this course will make your job easier.  Authors, editors, publishers and those interested in self-publishing, or any combination of those interests, will find useful information about what to do and what to avoid for maximum impact in the final published product.  The course will discuss the various aspects of preparation of philatelic findings for publication.  Ideally, participants should have some prior interest or exposure in one or more of those fields, with the aim to improve their skills.  Our hobby needs skilled writers, editors or philatelic publishers and this course will provide those skills.  Former APS Board member and current APS and FIP judge, Robert Odenweller, has prepared this course based on his experience as a philatelic author, editor and publisher.

Dues for 2011 are $25.00 when paid after December 31st.  While most members have paid their dues, several members have not.  Please renew ASAP as it costs the Society money to send out reminder notices.  More importantly, we really don’t want to lose you as members.  So if you have set aside your dues notice, please pull it out and mail it along with your dues today.  Or you can pay your dues online via PayPal.  Go to our website www.usstamps.org and click on “Renew” and follow the instructions.

The Society has a Hardship Fund for those who are unable to pay their annual dues because of a job layoff or any other hardships.  If you find yourself in one of these or similar situations, let me know and I will see about arranging for your dues to be paid for 2011.  We don’t want to lose any members because of unfortunate circumstances beyond your control.

If you want a copy of the 2011 bound volume of The United States Specialist, pay for it now along with your dues.  It will be mailed to you in the Spring of 2012.  Lastly, don’t forget to send your free classified word ads directly to Leonard Piszkiewicz, the Editor of The Specialist.

—Larry Ballantyne
Executive Secretary

Here are the United States Stamp Society medal winners that have been reported from recent shows:

NOTE: If you have won a USSS award and have not seen it listed here, please let me know and I will see that it is recorded.

Show Awards Chairs, please note:
USSS AWARDS PROGRAM

The USSS Gold Statue of Freedom Medal is sent automatically to all APS World Series of Philately shows.

The USSS Silver President’s Award medal is available upon request to all local and regional shows.

For more information, or to request an award, please contact me by e-mail or write to P.O. Box 690042, Houston, TX 77269-0042.

—Denise Stotts, Awards Committee

Our 2011 Annual Meeting will be held in Denver, Colorado at the Rocky Mountain Stamp Show during the weekend of May 13th to 15th, 2011.  Start making plans now to join your fellow U.S. stamp enthusiasts in the Mile High City for what is certain to be an enjoyable philatelic weekend.

We will hold our General Membership Meeting on Saturday during which we’ll present the Membership Award pins to our new 15-, 25- and 50-year members.  We will also hold our traditional Fellowship Dinner on Friday night and we are working on plans to make this one of the more memorable dinners we’ve had.

As we have done at our previous annual meetings, we hope to have a strong showing on the exhibit floor.  However, in order to accomplish this I urge all members who would like to exhibit at this show to submit an application as soon as possible.  The show committee has reserved 100 frames for us, but I’m sure these will be spoken for in short order.  Additionally, both the German Philatelic Society and the Auxiliary Markings Club are convening at this show so there is sure to be a great demand for frames.  The Prospectus and Entry Form, along with other show information, is available at the show website, www.rockymountainstampshow.com.

In addition to displaying a wide range of quality exhibits, we would also like to showcase the Society by giving presentations and holding committee meetings relating to the numerous areas of interest we have.  If you would like to help out with this effort, please let me know.

We will furnish more information about our planned show activities in the coming months.

—Nick Lombardi
President

The National Postage Stamp Show was held at the New Yorker Hotel, located one block north of Madison Square Garden.  That’s right — the National Postage Stamp Show, not the Fall New York Mega Event.  The American Stamp Dealers Association and its president, Jim Lee, are working hard to return this annual fall classic to its glory days and their efforts seem to be paying off.

In his “President’s Welcome” piece in the show program, Jim wrote:

For this show we have brought back seminars which are being presented by both ASDA members and stalwarts of the philatelic community.  There are even two sessions on stamp collecting basics, one for adults and one for the entire family. Exhibits are back.  You will find 20 invited frames of some very unusual philatelic material.  Several of them are single frame gold medal winners.  We expect to be able to offer more exhibits in the future once the renovation of the ballroom floor is complete next year.  Daniel F. Kelleher Auctions, LLC, the official show auctioneer, will be holding a major auction over the course of the show.  Don’t forget there will be first day ceremonies put on by both the United States Postal Service and the United Nations Postal Administration.

The floor was occupied by 53 dealer booths and a number of societies and postal administrations.  The mix of dealers at the show was a vast improvement over the bourse makeup of recent Mega shows.  There were both stamp and cover dealers present catering to the full range of collecting interests and at least three major supply dealers were in attendance offering everything collectors may need.

As is the tradition, the U.S. Postal Service held First Day ceremonies for its holiday series of stamps.  On Thursday, the four Holiday Evergreens and the single Angel with Lute stamps were released.  The Holiday Evergreens were an especially welcomed set since they are “forever” stamps and are much more attractive than the Liberty Bell forever issues that we’ve all become accustomed to seeing.

Although some of the society booth locations were off the beaten path, the United States Stamp Society was afforded prime real estate at the entrance to the show.  During all four days, we shared a booth with the American Philatelic Society and the chemistry was great.  More than three dozen USSS members stopped by to say hello and exchange information.  Among these were two 50-year members — Sol Gold from Nevada and Michael Borut who lives right in New York City.

A special thanks goes out to Frank Braithwaite and Bob Rufe for helping man the booth at different times.  As always, we are deeply grateful to Tom Jacks of Mountainside Stamps for hauling all of our booth supplies to and from the show.

As mentioned earlier, our booth was a popular place for members to get together and exchange information.  Although most of those who stopped by were from the immediate area, we were pleased to meet members from as far away as Maryland, Tennessee, Nevada and Illinois.  Those visiting the booth included: