AGEOD Forums

On 1 JUN 1861, the United States Postal Service ceased all operations in the seceded states. The Confederate Postal Service took over all the existing USA post offices within the CSA. I've found an interesting web page on Confederate Postage Stamps, authored by Dr. John L. Kimbrough.

Here's one example of a "cover":

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There are over a dozen other covers and adhesive stamps that you can view, on the site. The ones that I think are most fascinating are the "Adversity Covers".

Quoting from Dr. Kimbrough's CSA philately web page:
"As the war dragged on, the South began to experience severe shortages including paper for envelopes and letters. This led to the phenomenon known as ADVERSITY COVERS. Envelopes would be refolded and used a second time (known as Turned Covers). Envelopes were made out of whatever paper was handy. We see envelopes made from book pages, printed forms, ledger sheets, old letters, maps -- the list of paper items used to make Confederate envelopes can be as long as your imagination."

Here's an example of a "adversity cover":

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It's made out of wallpaper!

I haven't read the entire site, but there are lots of fascinating details and technicalities that stamp collectors will no doubt love.

I hope you enjoy the site!
Aphrodite Mae

That really does conjure up some charming images---of someone in Savannah deciding "my, I really DO have to respond to her thoughtful letter..." and heading to that particular place on the wall, scissors in hand, to cut off an envelope. One might go to the room with the most hideous wallpaper (that you never liked) to start mailing it all off, or would start with the wallpaper behind a dresser perhaps, to keep the evidence of your postal habits a secret for as long as decently possible.

"Gee Porgy, I didn't know you were a philatelist"
"Oh creepies, Mudhead!"

(A special award to anyone who can cite the source of this exchange. Hint: one of the authors was in the obits a week or two ago.)

Only Our Gracious Queen is wise enough to champion such an obscure field of study!

Peter Bergman Firesign Theatre, wonderful satirist. I'll let someone else answer the other part of the question off the top of their head--I can't.

But I do know:

“Don’t Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers”
ouet:

It is worth noting that the Confederate post Office was the only government department to run at a profit.

Le Ricain wrote:It is worth noting that the Confederate post Office was the only government department to run at a profit.

I didn't know that! Can you provide a link of some sort?

Aphrodite Mae wrote:I didn't know that! Can you provide a link of some sort?

Confederate Post Office running at a profit.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Henninger_Reagan

Good heavens, Rick, my husband certainly has many similarities with John Henninger Reagan! They were born in locations an hour's drive apart; the both were surveyors; the both were tutors; and they both had a knack for business! Thanks for a great link!