Precancel Information

A Stamp Tag is a text box used to identify stamps and collectibles. home Blog EMail EBay

This is Jim Bryden's Book

Part I: Stamp Collecting

Part II: Photos, History, Genealogy

Part III: Denver & Driving

Jim Bryden's Book
Part I: Stamp Collecting

1:::Stamp Tags is a free program to help you print framed boxes for identifying stamps

2 :::Stamp Tags screen shots

3 :::Download Stamp Tags free

4 :::History: Stamp Collecting in the 20th Century

5 :::Great Britain Machin heads, Phosphor Bands, etc.

6 :::Machin Head List

7 :::About Precancels

8 :::Precancels: San Francisco Breaks

9 :::Kans & Nebr Overprints

10 :::Revenue Stamps of Mexico

a Timeline of Human Transportation and Communications

PRECANCELS

Precancel Information: A glossary, with information about precancels for stamp collectors and dealers. You can get an idea of which precancels might command a premium.

Bureau Precancel Album: Download free files for STAMP TAGS and database files to make your own complete album for Bureau precancels, or just a state or two.

San Francisco Breaks: Learn information about San Francisco's Precancel Type L-3 electro: Why are those lines missing? A little about the moving type L-7 typeset, too.

Precancel Information Page from Stamp Tags

Here is a Brief list of Precancel terms, including some quick tips to identify the relative scarcity of some precancels. For really good information on precancels, go to the Precancel Stamp Society (PSS) web page at http://www.precancels.com/

Precancel

A stamp that has had the cancellation applied before the stamp is put on an envelope.

CTO - cancelled to order

Stamps that are cancelled with no intention of ever using them for payment of postage. Most often applied on stamps of third-world countries to sell discounted stamps to collectors.

Bureau Precancel

Precancels printed by the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing. These precancels are often the most common, and also the most perfectly printed precancels. They are precancelled before the stamps are gummed and perforated. All Bureaus are on common definitives, coils and sheet stamps. There are 9367 Bureaus of the type City/State (on stamps of 1923 and later, plus Experimentals and Playing Card Stamps). Recent bureaus are the "service inscribed" type (non-profit, etc.) PSS numbers are #1-100.

Experimentals

Bureau precancels on Washington-Franklin heads and on postage dues of 1917. Only Augusta, Maine; New Orleans, Louisiana; and San Francisco, California received Experimental prints. All of these are worth a few bucks, but be cautious, there are locals that resemble these.

Local Precancel

Any precancel that are is not a Bureau. They are overprinted in the cities that appear on the stamp. The Precancel Stamp Society categorizes them by method of printing (device type).

.

Precancel Device

The implement used to apply the precancels before the stamps are separated.

City-Type Coils

Locally precancelled coils from USPO-provided devices. PSS numbers 101 to 183.

Electroplates
Electros

Printed precancels, usually dark black in appearance, and more or less well-printed. Many of these are extremely common, many are very common inverted, less-so doubled. PSS numbers 201 to 299 (for USPS contracted devices), or L#E (for locally manufactured devices).

Double-Line Electros
DLEs

Electros with two lines above and two lines below the city and state. Generally, PSS numbers 241-252.

Rubber Handstamps

Precancels made by hand with a rubber device. The devices became distorted, and were not supplied after 1932. PSS numbers 401-495 (with lines) and 501-635 (with bars). Lines extend from one subject (stamp) to the next; bars have a break between stamps. Because these devices lasted such a short time, and were used only by small post offices, many of these precancels have become relatively rare.

Stereotype Handstamps

Precancels made by hand with metal devices. Applied properly, these precancels can look extremely nice, but usually appear incomplete or blotchy. Not supplied after 1958. PSS numbers 701-750.

Vinyl Handstamps

Virtually all handstamps since 1958 have been made from vinyl. These are the most common precancels from small towns, you can generally write in to the city's post office and receive copies of current stamps precancelled with a vinyl device. PSS numbers 801-

Local Devices

Local Devices are those that were not supplied under contract by the USPO. They include electros, handstamps, typesets, computer printeds, mimeographs, integral handstamps, and integral typesets. Integrals are devices that include the date within the device. PSS number L#x.

Dateds

Since 1938, companies using precancels on items containing postage over a certain amount, must include the company initials and the month and year on the precancels. These dated copies generally are sold at a discount of up to 75%, but there are also many collectors of dateds. SRC is Sears Roebuck, MW is Montgomery Wards.

Bars - Silent or
Mute Precancels

Some early precancels had no city name on them. They were precancelled with lines, bars, wavy lines, etc. These generally cannot be absolutely verified to be genuine unless on a cover. These were on issues as early as the Hale Local stamps of 1844. Lines or bars only were revived on bureaus in recent years, but they are not included with these.

New York Pearls

Early postage due stamps were precancelled by New York City with a series of pearl-shaped filled circles, "NY" inside a circle.

Classic Precancels

Precancels on stamps issued before 1922 (Washington & Franklin Heads and earlier) are considered the Classics, or, in some circles, the Classics are those issued before 1900.

Towns and Types

Possibly the most popular way to collect precancels, you collect one precancelled stamp from each town for a "town collection", or one stamp of each type for each town for a "town & type collection."

Synoptic Collection

A regular collection of US stamps, but all of them precancelled. For most definitives and postage dues, precancels are very common. For stamps from about 1917-1940, the precancelled stamps sometimes seem more common than unprecancelled (possibly because only the precancels were saved from the trash). Precancelled commemoratives are much harder to find. But anybody can apply a handstamp to any stamp there is, so precancels for a synoptic collection are very seldom worth more than Scott value (used). You can also have a synoptic collection for a given state or city.

Denominations Collection

A collection of precancels based on the underlying stamp. Some popular stamps include the 8¢ Liberty issue, 13¢ Apple Green Franklin, 2¢ black Harding, etc. You will often see collections formed by precancel tyros arranged by denomination rather than by city.

Download StampTags files to make your own Bureau Precancel Album

I made these album pages while I was writing STAMP TAGS. There is a sample in the Help files already, the page for Arkansas. They will work perfectly well with the free versions of STAMP TAGS.

Please note that some of the earlier states (in alphabetical order) were written with an earlier version of STAMP TAGS, and so may look a little strange. You can load those into the program, and save them in a new file. They can then be imported into Stamp Tags Dot, if you like. They were also written with an earlier version of the PSS catalog, so they may not be completely up to date. Only the City/State Bureaus are included. Simply download the file, and click on the download to un-zip the files to your directory.

Download the Stamp Tags Bureau Album pages.

Download the database files that were used to make the pages.

A Stamp Tag is a text box used to identify stamps and collectibles. home Blog EMail EBay
This is Jim Bryden's Book	Part I: Stamp Collecting	Part II: Photos, History, Genealogy	Part III: Denver & Driving

Precancel	A stamp that has had the cancellation applied before the stamp is put on an envelope.
CTO - cancelled to order	Stamps that are cancelled with no intention of ever using them for payment of postage. Most often applied on stamps of third-world countries to sell discounted stamps to collectors.
Bureau Precancel	Precancels printed by the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing. These precancels are often the most common, and also the most perfectly printed precancels. They are precancelled before the stamps are gummed and perforated. All Bureaus are on common definitives, coils and sheet stamps. There are 9367 Bureaus of the type City/State (on stamps of 1923 and later, plus Experimentals and Playing Card Stamps). Recent bureaus are the "service inscribed" type (non-profit, etc.) PSS numbers are #1-100.
Experimentals	Bureau precancels on Washington-Franklin heads and on postage dues of 1917. Only Augusta, Maine; New Orleans, Louisiana; and San Francisco, California received Experimental prints. All of these are worth a few bucks, but be cautious, there are locals that resemble these.
Local Precancel	Any precancel that are is not a Bureau. They are overprinted in the cities that appear on the stamp. The Precancel Stamp Society categorizes them by method of printing (device type). .
Precancel Device	The implement used to apply the precancels before the stamps are separated.
City-Type Coils	Locally precancelled coils from USPO-provided devices. PSS numbers 101 to 183.
Electroplates Electros	Printed precancels, usually dark black in appearance, and more or less well-printed. Many of these are extremely common, many are very common inverted, less-so doubled. PSS numbers 201 to 299 (for USPS contracted devices), or L#E (for locally manufactured devices).
Double-Line Electros DLEs	Electros with two lines above and two lines below the city and state. Generally, PSS numbers 241-252.
Rubber Handstamps	Precancels made by hand with a rubber device. The devices became distorted, and were not supplied after 1932. PSS numbers 401-495 (with lines) and 501-635 (with bars). Lines extend from one subject (stamp) to the next; bars have a break between stamps. Because these devices lasted such a short time, and were used only by small post offices, many of these precancels have become relatively rare.
Stereotype Handstamps	Precancels made by hand with metal devices. Applied properly, these precancels can look extremely nice, but usually appear incomplete or blotchy. Not supplied after 1958. PSS numbers 701-750.
Vinyl Handstamps	Virtually all handstamps since 1958 have been made from vinyl. These are the most common precancels from small towns, you can generally write in to the city's post office and receive copies of current stamps precancelled with a vinyl device. PSS numbers 801-
Local Devices	Local Devices are those that were not supplied under contract by the USPO. They include electros, handstamps, typesets, computer printeds, mimeographs, integral handstamps, and integral typesets. Integrals are devices that include the date within the device. PSS number L#x.
Dateds	Since 1938, companies using precancels on items containing postage over a certain amount, must include the company initials and the month and year on the precancels. These dated copies generally are sold at a discount of up to 75%, but there are also many collectors of dateds. SRC is Sears Roebuck, MW is Montgomery Wards.
Bars - Silent or Mute Precancels	Some early precancels had no city name on them. They were precancelled with lines, bars, wavy lines, etc. These generally cannot be absolutely verified to be genuine unless on a cover. These were on issues as early as the Hale Local stamps of 1844. Lines or bars only were revived on bureaus in recent years, but they are not included with these.
New York Pearls	Early postage due stamps were precancelled by New York City with a series of pearl-shaped filled circles, "NY" inside a circle.
Classic Precancels	Precancels on stamps issued before 1922 (Washington & Franklin Heads and earlier) are considered the Classics, or, in some circles, the Classics are those issued before 1900.
Towns and Types	Possibly the most popular way to collect precancels, you collect one precancelled stamp from each town for a "town collection", or one stamp of each type for each town for a "town & type collection."
Synoptic Collection	A regular collection of US stamps, but all of them precancelled. For most definitives and postage dues, precancels are very common. For stamps from about 1917-1940, the precancelled stamps sometimes seem more common than unprecancelled (possibly because only the precancels were saved from the trash). Precancelled commemoratives are much harder to find. But anybody can apply a handstamp to any stamp there is, so precancels for a synoptic collection are very seldom worth more than Scott value (used). You can also have a synoptic collection for a given state or city.
Denominations Collection	A collection of precancels based on the underlying stamp. Some popular stamps include the 8¢ Liberty issue, 13¢ Apple Green Franklin, 2¢ black Harding, etc. You will often see collections formed by precancel tyros arranged by denomination rather than by city.