OBTAINING POSTMARKS: THE DIY METHOD
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USA
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EVERYDAY POSTMARKS >> First, select a post office and locate its zip code. Zip-codes.com is a good website to look up towns & their zip codes. Once you find a town that catches your interest, you need to address a letter. You can enter that zip code on http://usps.whitepages.com/ if you want to get the street address for mailing. After entering your desired zip code, you may discover other post offices in the vicinity of that zip code to which you may want to send postmark requests.
To obtain a sample of the normal, everyday postmarks used to hand-cancel letters and packages at this post office, you will need to send them a stamp to cancel. From experience, I've learned it is best to send first-class postage to be cancelled... currently 44c for an envelope or 28c for a post card. I've sent one-cent stamps, but some postmasters politely refuse to cancel them. Send large index cards (treated as post cards) with a 28c stamp. I also include a self-addressed, stamped (44c) envelope (3 5/8 X 6 1/2 inch) in which the postmaster can return the post card. This protects the inner post card from being damaged in the mail system (and sometimes you will get an extra postmark on the outer envelope).
When I first mailed postmark
requests, I would send a sealed SASE for cancel, nothing else. The postmaster would hand-cancel
it and send it back through the mail. Unfortunately, about one-fourth
of the envelopes would show up in my mailbox with machine cancel
markings all over it... like these:
The bottom one was cancelled by a machine at the main processing facility for the region. The one at the top went through a machine in a completely different state, judging by the dark zip code. Both of these would have been wonderful additions to a collection, but they were ruined. That's why I send a post card and a SASE to put it in.
Oh, and you will probably need a little note to tell the postmaster what you want. I find the following works pretty well:
Dear Postmaster:
I am working on a postmark collection. I have enclosed a post
card, which I would like to be hand-cancelled with a postmark from your town.
To protect this post card from machine cancels in its journey through the
mail system, I have enclosed a self-addressed, stamped envelope
in which to seal and send back to me. Thank you very much for your time!
Sincerely,
Your Name
Some post offices have meter mail, so you could always ask the postmaster to put your envelope in the meter mail... Meter mail often avoids overcancels.
Put the note, along with your stamped postcard and SASE inside the envelope addressed to the postmaster, and you're done! Expect your return letter in six to fourteen days. Hopefully the postmark's quality will be acceptable, but ya never know. :-{
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PICTORIAL POSTMARKS >> Organizations, committees, and sometimes the USPS itself will offer a pictorial (picture) postmark at one of its branches for a particular day. The reason? Usually a special event, holiday, or anniversary for the town. All mail going through that post office that day will be uniquely postmarked. If the occasion is accompanied by an event, sometimes a temporary "post office" will be set up at the event for attendees. They can buy and send postcards or bring home a souvenir.
The USPS gives those who cannot
attend the event an opportunity
to receive the pictorial postmark as well. You must send a SASE
and also an envelope or postcard with first class postage to receive
the cancellation. The only sane way to find out when & where
the pictorial postmarks are being offered is to check out
the postal bulletin, published every other Thursday by the USPS.
Here's a link to the
online version... make sure to open the PDF
version, or you won't be able to see the pictorial designs.
The instructions in the postal bulletin are pretty self-explanatory.
Find a few you like and start mailing!
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CANADA
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Canada Post is very helpful offering collectors a chance to send for and receive postmarks. A large percentage of Canadian post offices have permanent pictorial postmarks used for hand-canceling stamped mail. The following Canada Post link has a listing of towns that offer pictorial postmarks, along with the addresses of those post offices, and even an image of each postmark!
Canada Post Cancel Collecting Page
Or you can find a post office locator via this page on the Canada Post website. Look up a post office of your choice, including ones that only have a normal, non-pictorial postmark.
If you're in the U.S., it's not too difficult to send for Canadian cancels. The outer envelope you send to Canada must have 75c of U.S. postage instead of the usual 44c. You will also have to obtain Canadian stamps. They can be ordered through the Canada Post website: http://www.canadapost.ca/shop/personal/personal.jsf
Make sure you order 57c stamps for the envelopes you want canceled as well as $1.00 stamps for your SASEs. ($1.00 is the rate Canada currently charges to send first-class mail to the U.S.)
...Just to clarify: your outer envelope should include a 75c U.S. stamp. Inside, you should have a note requesting the postmark, a small Canadian-stamped 57c envelope, and a larger Canadian-stamped $1.00 envelope with your address on it. Make sure to write "USA" after the bottom line of your address. Make sure "CANADA" is written on the bottom line of the outer envelope.
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AUSTRALIA
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Obtaining
Australian postmarks yourself is even more expensive than
getting Canadian ones (if you're in the U.S.). It's on the other side of
the
world, for Pete's sake! Buy the stamps first:
Click here.
Use Australia
Post's "find a postal outlet" page to browse post offices.
You will have to know the state (yes, Australia has states like the U.S.) and
the postcode... 4-digit instead of 5-digit, though. Here's how I
address my requests to Australia, as infrequent as they may be:
Postal Manager
Normanville LPO
Normanville SA 5204
AUSTRALIA
And hey, why
not just start with Normanville? Send your first request
there as a test run. I know it works, because
I have
successfully received a postmark from there.
Australia Post
has a listing of pictorial postmarks on its website:
http://www.stamps.com.au/collectors/postmarking
Your outer
envelope should include a 98c U.S. stamp. Inside, you should
have a note requesting the postmark, a small envelope with 60c in Australian
postage
and a larger envelope with $2.20 of Australian postage on it. Make sure to write "USA"
on
the bottom line after your address! Always, always important.
Special Note: In Australia, you must use international
stamps to send mail outside
of Australia. These stamps have a blue "international post" area on them
and are taxed
differently than domestic stamps.
* prices subject to change
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OTHER COUNTRIES
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One of the easiest way
to start receiving postmarks from other countries is to join Postcrossing.
(www.postcrossing.com)
Postcrossing is a postcard-exchange site. The deal is, you send a postcard
to a random address and write an ID on the postcard. The recipient
registers the ID, and then you are owed a postcard from another random member.
The system works quite well, and while you won't really get to choose what
country or town your postcards come from, you are sure to get some interesting
postmarks from around the globe. If you do want a specific country, try
the site's forums at
forum.postcrossing.com. Plenty of
postcard enthusiasts there. Some may be willing to help you out!
If you don't want to go to the trouble of buying other countries' stamps for postmark requests, you can purchase an International Reply Coupon. It's worth the value of one international-rate stamp from the country you're sending the request to. Write and ask the postal clerk to convert it into one international stamp... and ask if they'll send your self-addressed envelope back with a stamp and a postmark.