U311 cut square, UPSS Die 88, variety spur above the first S of STATES, EFOs

Item Specifics

Country

United States

Catalog Number

U311

Stamp Type

Postal Stationery

Condition

Used

Stamp Format

Single

Topic

People - Politicians

Year of Issue

1890

Item Description

35x40mm. This cut square was among thousands of stamps and cut squares collected from businesses at Union City, Indiana, in the early 1890s. Most of the readable postmarks in this hoard are from 1891 to 1893. Most of the 11-12,000 cut squares have the two-cent green Washington indicium that the United Postal Stationery Society (UPSS) identifies as Die 88. The Scott catalog number for this example on laid white paper is U311. This copy has a darker green color and includes part of UPSS watermark 8. There is soiling, particularly along the right edge.

This cancel is very common in the Union City hoard. The International Machine Company cancel was introduced at Indianapolis in 1892. (See April-June 1996 Indiana Postal History Society Newsletter, page 19.) This cancel was used by multiple Indiana cities until 1895. Mail with this same cancel was probably arriving at Union City from other states as well. The post office of origin for most of the machine cancels in the hoard is unknown.

The stamps in the hoard had been soaked from the envelopes around the time of their collection. The stamps and cut squares were then sorted and tied tightly with string and sewing thread into bundles of 100 each. That process protected most of the items from damage and aging for over a century. I inherited and began unpacking the bundles in 2000. None of these sale items from the hoard has ever been in a collection.

The Die 88 stamped envelopes were printed in huge quantities. They display a wide range of inking problems and die varieties, many of which fall under the EFO (errors, freaks and oddities) umbrella. Except for a few newly identified items that are not yet confirmed, these variations are found on multiple copies and have been documented by others. Some of these variations display progressive characteristics.

This cut square appears to have an inward-pointing spur above the first “S” of STATES. The Union City hoard contains two copies of this possible spur and I know of no other copies elsewhere. Without further copies to confirm this isn’t simply an inking issue, I am reluctant to consider it a die variety. The other unverified characteristic on this cut square is the squared foot of the numeral “2” downstroke. I have found only four Die 88 copies with this characteristic in the Union City hoard so far. This copy is one of two on white paper; the other two copies are on amber and oriental buff paper.

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APS Member

Seller Information

Seller

keesindy (4693)

Registered Since

04/11/2016

Feedback

100%

Store

Stamps from Keesindy

Item Location

Indiana, United States

Ships To

United States

Shipping Instructions

About 3½ years ago, I stopped selling and shipping outside the US due to new postal rules and rapidly rising costs. The USPS is raising postal rates again in January 2019. Today, December 25, 2018, due to the continuing rise in the cost of postage and associated fees, I am reluctantly raising my general shipping fee for the first time in many years. My sales here at HipStamp involve no additional charge for the purchase of multiple stamps. Shipping is via USPS unless otherwise specified. Be sure to contact me before making your purchases if you have questions.

Returns Accepted

Yes

Returns Policy

All items may be returned unless otherwise stated in the listing. Of course, I cannot be responsible if uninsured items are damaged during shipping. If you are dissatisfied with a purchase, contact me within 7 days of your receipt of the item to make arrangements for returning it. If I have made an error in my listing or the item is not as described, you will receive a full reimbursement plus the pre-agreed-upon cost to return the item.