PART FIVE (1987 to 1996)

Having survived, nay thrived, during the previous forty years, there was every good reason to suppose that the next 10 years would follow a similar pattern and the Society would reach its Fiftieth Anniversary with its head still held high and a big smile on its face.
The penultimate decade closed with the 39th Annual General Meeting, at which news was given that the membership totaled 100, the finances were in the black with a healthy surplus for the year of £l70 and the Exchange Packet had produced over £200 for the Society’s coffers from sales commission. Good reason for the big smile!

The final decade was entered with the publication of Volume 31, No 1 of Precancels, this still in the A4 size paper and issued bi-monthly with the front page headed with its title surrounded by a random selection of precancel photographs. The contents of this were unusual to say the least, insofar as they were almost completely devoted to the AGM report, Pennsylvania Catalogue price changes and Belgium and Luxembourg counts accompanied by a summary chart of how the members had responded to the various counts over the previous 2 years.

The next copy gave us a wide range of articles starting with the further note by P.K.Stone on more New Zealand precancels, one by Roy Osborn on Stamford Mercury wrappers of Great Britain and two by Colin Blakebrough on Dutch and American wrappers; these were followed by the first of a series of articles by Colin Phillip charting the movement of Canadian precancel catalogue prices over the previous 40 years. This copy along with the Auction List of some 170 lots, was proof alone that the Society was not standing still and was boldly striding into the future.

In one of the following issues was an article by Jim Hirstein, the present Secretary of PSS Inc, on the familiar dated cancels used by Sears, Roebuck and Company (SRC-), while another came along with the little known topic of Precancels on Foreign Bill stamps. Probably most striking was an illustrated 3 page presentation of the development of the US Bureau from the early post Experimental issue to the Authorized Non-profit Organisation issue on the Transportation Coils.

About this time, Bob Eveleigh presented the first count starting the fifth year of such findings, and it is good to see that 2 of our American members had not only participated, but filled 2 of the top 3 places with their figures for US Bureaus.

By the middle of 1988, we saw the issue of precancels from an unexpected area, that of the Federated States of Micronesia with cancels from such unusual island place names as Yap, Truk, Kosrei and Pohnpei. At the same time, British Commercial overprints were rapidly becoming the trendiest stamps to be seen to collect, at least by many members of the British Society, and to this end a large introductory paper of some 4 pages was presented by David Lane, in this copy of Precancels. This was followed by a further 3 pages in the next issue and then 4 in the next.

Following the Secretary’s visit to the Fall Roundup of the Eastern Pennsylvania PS, a report was given in this last copy of Precancels with an explanation of the then current prices charged for material in the States and the new prices to be expected in the catalogues of the future. A list of such price increases was included which tended to make frightening reading. At that meeting he managed to enroll 8 new Stateside members and it was pleasing to see included in that copy, two articles by one of our US members, Jim Callis.

Volume 33 (34 in error), No 3 saw a change of format of Precancels with the soft, computer dot-matrix printout cast aside for a much finer version produced by Colin Phillip. This contained a long review by David Izzett, of the Canada Precancel Handbook by Geoff Walburn and others as well as an article on Manila Precancels by Gordon Rowe. Attached to this copy of Precancels was the first publication from the newly formed British Commercial Overprint Study Circle, as part of our Society.

The next copy of Precancels continued to show the progress of our Society as it contained, in addition to the usual notices and reports, a complete catalogue by Tom Wardlow of the precancels of Pennsylvania (4 pages), the latest style descriptions for Group 5 of US Bureaus (3 pages with illustrations) and a further article on GB Precancels (2 pages illustrated).

Volume 34 saw the first of a completely new style of Precancels, this time a several paged edition of A5 size with the text in a very clear but reduced font. It now remained to be seen how the membership would accept this change and how articles would be illustrated when this was necessary. This first copy however carried all the usual items plus articles covering precancels from Turkey, Denmark as well as Great Britain, each with very clear illustrations. The following issue reported that the new format was acclaimed by members and as if to prove the value of clear illustrations, David Izzett presented a fully illustrated article entitled ‘Belgium – Not a Precancel’. Other topics such as prices of France and Monaco cancels plus a lengthy article by Dave Philcox on how to use the Town and Type Catalogue.

As was usual, the regular publication of Precancels continued and such information unfolded on different aspects of the countries we all collect. Articles on such as Constant Varieties of the Canadian Admiral Issue by David Izzett, the 1969 US Christmas Precancel by Bob Eveleigh and a continued analysis of the US Bureau Issues by Colin Philip. It was also about this time that the Society was able to boast a publication of its own other than Precancels, the Illustrated Glossary Of Precancels written by Colin Philip and Dave Philcox.

Phil Cayford, wittingly one presumes, started a most interesting and at times amusing series of letters and notes by knocking the use of computers as a useful tool of philately. This literary banter came at a most opportune time as Precancels was momentarily suffering one of its quiescent periods. This however did not last for long, as before long, a series of articles on the precancels of the kingdom of Hanover by Wilhelm Engelhardt was started. This covered 3 issues of Precancels, and to the specialist must have been most useful, but regrettably it was not illustrated and many members, such as the author of these notes are still unaware of what a Hanover precancel looks like!

Variety continued to be the spice of life over the next issues with a wide range of topics presented including US precancelled envelopes, Japanese New Year Cards, Hungarian Wrappers, British precancelled Post Office Training stamps and many others along with brief notes on British Meter Cancellations, Cigarette Tube Stamps and US Parcel Post cancels. All the former were in addition to a very good series by Carl Bibo on Precancels of Europe. As one can have guessed, a number of articles published in Precancels had previously been seen in the Forum, but one small note, again copied from that publication, was a light hearted one on the Produce Seal Society’s foundation in 1991. (This Society still exists and thrives to the extent that it even has space at the PSS Convention in America every year, and is far from a joke.)

And so it went on into the last few years of the decade, and to date the latest copy of Precancels, alone proves the Society is very much still alive and kicking. Articles are still appearing in Precancels, albeit not with quite the same volume and enthusiasm as pertained about twenty years ago, but the membership hovers regularly between eighty and one hundred, the Annual General Meeting is still what it says – Annual, bimonthly meetings are still held regularly, Precancels appears bimonthly, the various counts are still reported, Annual Auctions are held, the Library grows and thrives and all that is left now is to ponder about the success of the next fifty years.

One thing I feel certain about, and that is that Reg and I will not be around in 2046, or will we?

Note: The above article was written in 1996. Since then the Society has continued to thrive, in no small measure due to the enthusiasm and drive of Dave Philcox who served as Secretary for 24 years until his untimely death in 2003 aged 77. Dave joined the PSSGB in 1972 and his great interest in precancels made him without doubt the foremost authority on the subject in the UK.

Under its current management of an active and forward-looking committee, the Society will no doubt continue to bring together its devotees for another 50 years!