Publications
This web page features publications by members of the Southeast Federation of Stamp Clubs, which are listed here as a service to the authors.
Florida County and Postmaster Postmarks
Deane R. Briggs, M.D.
During the past half century, county and postmaster postmark collecting has become a popular area of specialization within the scope of “Postal History.” State postal history societies have been established for nearly all states in this country and many of these societies have published or maintain comprehensive listings and tracings which include county and postmaster postmarks.
This image-rich book documents the 74 known Florida postmarks and includes a listing of the dates of use as well as an updated current census of all known examples.
About Deane R. Briggs, M.D.
Deane was for many years the editor of the Florida Postal History Journal, the publication of the Florida Postal History Society, and is currently the Treasurer of the society. His Florida postal history collection is extensive and he has contributed to several Florida-specific publications. Among those are:
Florida Stampless Postal History 1763 -1861, published by David G. Phillips Publishing Co., Inc. in 1999
Florida Postal History 1763-1861, published by the Florida Postal History Society in 2018 and 2022.
Florida Postal History During the Civil War, published by the Confederate Stamp Alliance in 2018.
Georgia Post Roads Literature Award
Journal Editor - Steve L. Swain
The Federation is pleased to announce that Georgia Post Roads was awarded a Gold in the August 2024 Literature competition for the APS Great American Stamp Show.
Federation member Georgia Postal History Society publishes Georgia Post Roads offering widely diverse, substantive articles reflecting original research and presentations of unique Georgia postal artifacts, many from the authors’ collections. Articles are supported with not only postal artifacts but with photographs and images of people, maps, monuments, drawings, buildings, etc., that complement the text with considerable value.
For more information about the Georgia Postal History Society, please contact the editor at [email protected].
North Carolina Postal Historian Literature Award
Journal Editors - Tony Crumbley and Steve L. Swain
The Federation is pleased to announce that the North Carolina Postal Historian was awarded a Gold in the August 2024 Literature competition for the APS Great American Stamp Show.
The North Carolina Postal Historian, published quarterly by Federation member North Carolina History Society, offers scholarly and intriguing insight into unique aspects of North Carolina postal history. Articles published in the journal are typically supported with images of covers and other philatelic artifacts from the authors’ collections. Representative images of people, maps, monuments, drawings, buildings, etc., significantly enhance the text and presentation.
For more information about the North Carolina Postal History Society, please contact the editor at [email protected].
Russia in Finland: The Story of Russian Stamps & Postal Stationery Used in Finland, 1899-1918
Jon Iversen, Morton Narstad, and Roger Quinby
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This book makes available for the first time a general postal history overview of this era of Finnish philately in the English language. The work was commissioned by Roger Quinby, an expert on Finnish philately, who now resides in greater Atlanta, and is a valued member of the Southeast's philatelic community. The book covers such topics as the importance of Russian stamps used in Finland, the administration of postal operations under Russian authority, the Russification of the Finnish post, the removal of Finnish national identity from postal mailings, and many other cultural and historical events that influence the postal history of the era.
We understand that dealer Jay Smith and Associates has a very limited supply of this book. For pricing and availability, you may contact Jay Smith at P.O. Box 650 Snow Camp, NC 27349-0650 Phone: 1-800-447-8267 Email: [email protected] |
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About Roger Quinby
Roger P. Quinby, FRPSL, is a lifelong stamp collector who specializes in the stamps and postal history of Finland. Roger has exhibited at the International level, and at the Large Gold level nationally. Roger is a past-president of the Scandinavian Collectors Club, and is an APS accredited philatelic judge and literature judge. Roger was recognized in 2017 as the Rowland Hill honoree of the Southeast Federation of Stamp Clubs, and is a Fellow of the Royal Philatelic Society London. Roger is an attorney by profession, and worked in senior leadership positions of the New York State government until his retirement. He currently resides in the greater Atlanta area. |
The Postal History of Saint Simons Island, Georgia
Steve L. Swain
Awarded a Vermeil at the 2022 APS Great American Stamp Show Literature Competition
The Postal History of Saint Simons Island, Georgia is another venture into a new field offering a look into one aspect of Georgia postal history, a state with very few published resources.
Author Steve Swain is a life-long resident of Georgia and the editor of Georgia Post Roads, the journal of the Georgia Postal History Society. He is well versed in his subject and relates the full story with tales dating back to the formation of the United States.
Presenting not only the documented postal history of the best known of the barrier islands, Swain dug deep into the history of the island and its people and brings it alive in his extensive narrative. With more than 140 supporting images, you’ll learn all about the St. Simons Island post offices, postmasters, postal markings, and the people that have supported this popular island community.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 68-page monograph can be ordered from La Posta Publications, POB 6074 Fredericksburg, VA 22403, or from the La Posta website www.lapostapub.com. Also, you can contact the author at [email protected].
About Steve Swain
Steve's primary collecting interests and pursuits focus on U.S. postal history, both as an author and an editor/publisher of three postal history journals: Georgia Post Roads, the Florida Postal History Journal, and the North Carolina Postal Historian.
Steve's philatelic articles have appeared in La Posta, The American Philatelist, Linn’s Stamp News, the Postal History Journal, Airpost Journal, First Days, U.S. Stamp News, Mekeel’s & Stamps, The Philatelic Communicator, The Circuit, Stamp Insider, Pennsylvania Postal Historian, North Carolina Postal Historian, and several other regional and state philatelic publications.
Upon retirement, Steve expanded his philatelic interests and activities as the President of the Georgia Postal History Society, the Vice President of the Southeast Federation of Stamp Clubs and as a board member of several philatelic organizations. He also enjoys the stamp collecting comradery of several local stamp clubs.
Steve and his wife, Lisa, have been visiting the Georgia barrier islands since 1990. “Enjoying the timeless charm and distinctive history of classic Georgia coastal towns is what we envisioned many years ago and not once have we been disappointed.”
Steve's primary collecting interests and pursuits focus on U.S. postal history, both as an author and an editor/publisher of three postal history journals: Georgia Post Roads, the Florida Postal History Journal, and the North Carolina Postal Historian.
Steve's philatelic articles have appeared in La Posta, The American Philatelist, Linn’s Stamp News, the Postal History Journal, Airpost Journal, First Days, U.S. Stamp News, Mekeel’s & Stamps, The Philatelic Communicator, The Circuit, Stamp Insider, Pennsylvania Postal Historian, North Carolina Postal Historian, and several other regional and state philatelic publications.
Upon retirement, Steve expanded his philatelic interests and activities as the President of the Georgia Postal History Society, the Vice President of the Southeast Federation of Stamp Clubs and as a board member of several philatelic organizations. He also enjoys the stamp collecting comradery of several local stamp clubs.
Steve and his wife, Lisa, have been visiting the Georgia barrier islands since 1990. “Enjoying the timeless charm and distinctive history of classic Georgia coastal towns is what we envisioned many years ago and not once have we been disappointed.”
The King Family of Roswell, Georgia - A Postal History
Steve L. Swain
In his 1837 letter to his son Roswell King, Jr., Roswell King comments, “I think by staying here a little time I shall be able to bring about a great work for this State.” King was referring to the area in Cobb County later to be his namesake, Roswell. Characterized by King as the perfect site for his “experiment,” he envisioned a community that would combine industry and agriculture while providing relief from the unbearable climate of Georgia’s coast.
With expansions and additions, King’s textile mills operated for more than a hundred years. What began as King’s little village grew to become one of the ten largest cities in Georgia. The well-planned town with its central square, mill village, church, and quaint stores —the layout and architecture influenced by his New England background — and the grand mansions of the founding families have continued to bear witness to Roswell King’s enduring legacy.
Spanning many generations, the wide and intriguing history of the King family is an important chapter in the story of the growth and changes in both the city of Roswell and Georgia beginning at the outset of the nineteenth century. That history is abundantly and entertainingly revealed in King family postal history.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 60-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
1938 National Air Mail Week - Curiosities and Ephemera
Steve L. Swain
Covers mailed during the May 15-21, 1938, National Air Mail Week celebration can be a fascinating and enjoyable postal history collection theme. It is estimated that approximately 10,000 cachet designs were created specifically for the 1938 event.
Of the over 16.2 million letters mailed during the celebration week, many of the covers’ cachets are genuine works of art, reflecting professionally inspired designs and quality printing.
Using a state-by-state format, several studies have sought to present examples of mailings during the week of May 15, 1938, showcasing the numerous cachets, postmarks, and other markings on the covers. Those studies are certainly attractive and a pleasure to read.
To supplement those studies, this monograph can be characterized as items associated with the Air Mail Week event that are “curiosities” and “ephemera.”
Such artifacts include oddly designed cachets, labels and stickers applied to
covers, cachets printed on tissue thin paper (“flimsies”), Air Mail Week advertisements, autographs of unique persons, promotional posters, and various enclosures in mailings such as letters to a stamp collecting child, “Greetings”
from a postmaster or an event State Chairman.
Enjoy this tour down National Air Mail Week’s “road less traveled.”
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 90-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Steve L. Swain
Covers mailed during the May 15-21, 1938, National Air Mail Week celebration can be a fascinating and enjoyable postal history collection theme. It is estimated that approximately 10,000 cachet designs were created specifically for the 1938 event.
Of the over 16.2 million letters mailed during the celebration week, many of the covers’ cachets are genuine works of art, reflecting professionally inspired designs and quality printing.
Using a state-by-state format, several studies have sought to present examples of mailings during the week of May 15, 1938, showcasing the numerous cachets, postmarks, and other markings on the covers. Those studies are certainly attractive and a pleasure to read.
To supplement those studies, this monograph can be characterized as items associated with the Air Mail Week event that are “curiosities” and “ephemera.”
Such artifacts include oddly designed cachets, labels and stickers applied to
covers, cachets printed on tissue thin paper (“flimsies”), Air Mail Week advertisements, autographs of unique persons, promotional posters, and various enclosures in mailings such as letters to a stamp collecting child, “Greetings”
from a postmaster or an event State Chairman.
Enjoy this tour down National Air Mail Week’s “road less traveled.”
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 90-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
The Postal History of Tybee Island, Georgia
Steve L. Swain
Ocean City. Savannah Beach. Tybee. Tybee Island. The various names of the town have allowed for intriguing postal history beginning in 1885 with the opening of its first post office.
Tybee correspondence associated with the American Civil War offers detailed insight into the importance of the Island’s coastal position as another challenge, albeit unsuccessful, to the Union forces during the long campaign. Fort Screven’s importance in protecting the coast during the Spanish-American war also has been recorded and archived with various postal history artifacts.
The attraction of “Savannah’s beach” for one day excursions or extended stays prompted the creation of thousands of tourist related postcards. These records of Tybee history display images of hotels, restaurants, beaches, famous people, and, not the least of all, the Tybee lighthouse that remains today as an iconic tourist attraction showcased in the 2003 Southeastern Lighthouses stamp series.
Unquestionably, Tybee Island offers one of the widest ranging, richest chapters in the postal history of the seventeen Georgia barrier islands.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 76-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Steve L. Swain
Ocean City. Savannah Beach. Tybee. Tybee Island. The various names of the town have allowed for intriguing postal history beginning in 1885 with the opening of its first post office.
Tybee correspondence associated with the American Civil War offers detailed insight into the importance of the Island’s coastal position as another challenge, albeit unsuccessful, to the Union forces during the long campaign. Fort Screven’s importance in protecting the coast during the Spanish-American war also has been recorded and archived with various postal history artifacts.
The attraction of “Savannah’s beach” for one day excursions or extended stays prompted the creation of thousands of tourist related postcards. These records of Tybee history display images of hotels, restaurants, beaches, famous people, and, not the least of all, the Tybee lighthouse that remains today as an iconic tourist attraction showcased in the 2003 Southeastern Lighthouses stamp series.
Unquestionably, Tybee Island offers one of the widest ranging, richest chapters in the postal history of the seventeen Georgia barrier islands.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 76-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
The Postal History of Selected Georgia Barrier Islands
Steve L. Swain
This image rich study ventures into a new field offering a look into one aspect of Georgia’s postal history, a state with very few published resources. The monograph presents noteworthy postal history of three of the seventeen Georgia barrier islands.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 86-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Jekyll Island
The history of the Jekyll Island post office has an intriguing chapter involving the US Postal Service and the Jekyll Island Authority. Established July 1, 1959, until 2015, the island was served by a contract branch of the main post office in Brunswick, on the mainland. Today, the island has its own postal facility in the historic district, although it is common for mailings posted on the island to be processed and postmarked in Jacksonville, Florida.
Sapelo Island
Sapelo Island’s postal history is associated with several towns, post offices and names of those offices. An awareness and appreciation of this history begins with a section of the 1895 Post Route Map of the State of Georgia showing the towns and mail route components linking Sapelo Island.
Thomas Spalding (1774-1851) left the most important legacy to Sapelo Island and, as many people will insist, to most of the Georgia barrier islands. The history of the current day post office on Sapelo Island is a fascinating element of Spalding’s legacy.
Sea Island
Sea Island is an internationally known resort and residential colony located near St. Simons Island in Glynn County. The island is a privately owned and unincorporated. It is approximately five miles long and one and a half miles wide at its widest point.
The history of the Sea Island post office is a story of several locations and public hearings. Sea Island residents were adamant about not wanting their postal facility to be the St. Simons office 1.7 miles away, and eventually prevailed.
Steve L. Swain
This image rich study ventures into a new field offering a look into one aspect of Georgia’s postal history, a state with very few published resources. The monograph presents noteworthy postal history of three of the seventeen Georgia barrier islands.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 86-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Jekyll Island
The history of the Jekyll Island post office has an intriguing chapter involving the US Postal Service and the Jekyll Island Authority. Established July 1, 1959, until 2015, the island was served by a contract branch of the main post office in Brunswick, on the mainland. Today, the island has its own postal facility in the historic district, although it is common for mailings posted on the island to be processed and postmarked in Jacksonville, Florida.
Sapelo Island
Sapelo Island’s postal history is associated with several towns, post offices and names of those offices. An awareness and appreciation of this history begins with a section of the 1895 Post Route Map of the State of Georgia showing the towns and mail route components linking Sapelo Island.
Thomas Spalding (1774-1851) left the most important legacy to Sapelo Island and, as many people will insist, to most of the Georgia barrier islands. The history of the current day post office on Sapelo Island is a fascinating element of Spalding’s legacy.
Sea Island
Sea Island is an internationally known resort and residential colony located near St. Simons Island in Glynn County. The island is a privately owned and unincorporated. It is approximately five miles long and one and a half miles wide at its widest point.
The history of the Sea Island post office is a story of several locations and public hearings. Sea Island residents were adamant about not wanting their postal facility to be the St. Simons office 1.7 miles away, and eventually prevailed.
Bittersweet Family History
Steve L. Swain
When discoveries are made of letters tucked away many years before in dresser drawers and once-used purses, the sometimes difficult obligation of being the executor of a parent’s estate can offer bittersweet occasions to appreciate the lives of family members who you never knew that well. Such was when my mother passed away.
While sorting through the drawers in her bedroom nightstand, I came upon a stack of legal-size envelopes held together with a rubber band. As I loosened the stack, an index card fell out revealing my mother’s handwriting:
“Letters to my father from a friend.
I met him once as a child. He spoke no English.
I think he came from Cuba.
The script and drawings always fascinated me.”
What I was to learn over the next few hours as I read the letters and marveled at the watercolor paintings on the envelopes and on many pages of the enclosed letters, was truly a bittersweet realization.
Keeping them close at hand in her bedroom nightstand, my mother apparently treasured these letters for what they revealed about her father. I also have come to treasure the letters for their insight into my grandfather’s life, a life I only had glimpses of during my boyhood and teen years.
For my grandfather to consider his creative, imaginative companion a close friend, the letters offer significant revelations and explanations about my grandfather - his character, his personality, and his spirit, not only as a young man but throughout his life.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 44-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Steve L. Swain
When discoveries are made of letters tucked away many years before in dresser drawers and once-used purses, the sometimes difficult obligation of being the executor of a parent’s estate can offer bittersweet occasions to appreciate the lives of family members who you never knew that well. Such was when my mother passed away.
While sorting through the drawers in her bedroom nightstand, I came upon a stack of legal-size envelopes held together with a rubber band. As I loosened the stack, an index card fell out revealing my mother’s handwriting:
“Letters to my father from a friend.
I met him once as a child. He spoke no English.
I think he came from Cuba.
The script and drawings always fascinated me.”
What I was to learn over the next few hours as I read the letters and marveled at the watercolor paintings on the envelopes and on many pages of the enclosed letters, was truly a bittersweet realization.
Keeping them close at hand in her bedroom nightstand, my mother apparently treasured these letters for what they revealed about her father. I also have come to treasure the letters for their insight into my grandfather’s life, a life I only had glimpses of during my boyhood and teen years.
For my grandfather to consider his creative, imaginative companion a close friend, the letters offer significant revelations and explanations about my grandfather - his character, his personality, and his spirit, not only as a young man but throughout his life.
The 8.5 x 11-inch, full color, 44-page monograph can be ordered from the author at [email protected].
Florida Postal History Journal Literature Awards
Journal Editor - Steve L. Swain
Federation member Florida Postal History Society publishes the Florida Postal History Journal offering widely diverse, substantive articles reflecting original research and presentations of unique postal artifacts, many from the authors’ collections. Articles are supported with not only postal artifacts but with photographs and images of people, maps, monuments, drawings, buildings, etc., that complement the text with considerable value.
The Federation is pleased to announce that the Florida Postal History Journal was
awarded a Large Vermeil in 2022 at the literature competitions for both the APS Great American Stamp Show and CHICAGOPEX.
For more information about the Florida Postal History Journal, please contact the editor at [email protected].
Hubbard L. Hart's Influence on Stagecoach and Steamboat Travel and Commerce in Central Florida
Thomas M. Lera
There have been many articles and books written about the St. Johns, Ocklawaha, and Indian River steamboats, a few of which are listed in the Additional Reading section of this monograph. The author decided to not follow the direction of those authors, but rather to look at the Post Office Department (POD) mail routes in Central and Northern Florida, especially the ones which Hubbard L. Hart was awarded. In the 1850s, his Florida Stage Line was an important lifeline, carrying passengers and packages, as well as the U.S. mail.
This monograph also discusses Hart’s Civil War activities. Later with the help of the Florida Internal Improvement Fund reconstruction programs, he began development of the Ocklawaha River and Silver Springs eventually turning them into tourist destinations. Steamboats were a necessity in Central Florida because, by 1869, no railroad had yet reached Palatka or any point on the Ocklawaha River.
Hart built new steamboats to take tourists along the Ocklawaha, St. Johns and Indian Rivers who, in the early days, had to share the trip with freight and livestock. Between 1878 and 1884, Hart was awarded Florida Mail Route contracts on the St. Mary’s River, the boundary river between Florida and Georgia, and one on the Ocklawaha River.
On December 12, 1895, while on a promotion trip to the Cotton States & International Exposition in Atlanta, Hart died from injuries incurred when he fell getting off a streetcar. The Palatka Times-Herald’s obituary stated, “Hart has probably done more for the advancement of the interests of Central Florida than any man in the State.”
About Thomas Lera
Thomas Lera was the Winton M. Blount Research Chair at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum from 2008 to 2015. He was elected to membership of the Royal Philatelic Society London in 2009 and became a fellow in 2012, inducted into the American Philatelic Society's writers hall of fame in 2015, and in 2016 received the Distinguished Philatelic Texan Award.
He was a national philatelic judge, member of the Committee of Accreditation on National Judges and Exhibitions for the American Philatelic Society, and past president of NAPEX. He has won gold and grand awards for his single and multi-frame philatelic exhibits.
In 2019, Lera was honored with the American Philatelic Society’s (APS) Luff Award for Distinguished Philatelic Research.
An APS member since 1987, Lera has written over 100 philatelic articles and papers published in leading journals including The London Philatelist, The Collectors Club Philatelist, The American Philatelist, The Confederate Philatelist, The Congress Book, and Kelleher Magazine.
Of the many outstanding publications to Lera’s credit is the 2018 Florida Postal History 1763-1861, published by the Florida Postal History Society. Lera is a frequent contributor to the Society’s publication, The Florida Postal History Journal.
Thomas Lera was the Winton M. Blount Research Chair at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum from 2008 to 2015. He was elected to membership of the Royal Philatelic Society London in 2009 and became a fellow in 2012, inducted into the American Philatelic Society's writers hall of fame in 2015, and in 2016 received the Distinguished Philatelic Texan Award.
He was a national philatelic judge, member of the Committee of Accreditation on National Judges and Exhibitions for the American Philatelic Society, and past president of NAPEX. He has won gold and grand awards for his single and multi-frame philatelic exhibits.
In 2019, Lera was honored with the American Philatelic Society’s (APS) Luff Award for Distinguished Philatelic Research.
An APS member since 1987, Lera has written over 100 philatelic articles and papers published in leading journals including The London Philatelist, The Collectors Club Philatelist, The American Philatelist, The Confederate Philatelist, The Congress Book, and Kelleher Magazine.
Of the many outstanding publications to Lera’s credit is the 2018 Florida Postal History 1763-1861, published by the Florida Postal History Society. Lera is a frequent contributor to the Society’s publication, The Florida Postal History Journal.