19th Century
"Fancy" Cancels Database
Tracings and info courtesy of James M. Cole,
The U.S. Philatelic Classics Society, and Bill Weiss
Welcome to the Stamp Smarter 1870-1894 US 'Fancy' Cancels Database. This database is a community project and is in database form in recognition that new cancels are being uncovered every week. If you have a cancel from this period that is not listed please consider sending a scan for inclusion into the database.
There is no firm definition is a ‘fancy cancel’ but they tend to be attractive, somewhat unique cancels. Many were produced at the local post office level by postmaster and other postal employees. This database leans towards inclusion of cancels as opposed to limiting the scope.
‘Fancy cancels’ of this era is a fun and fascinating part of US stamp collecting. To use the database simply select one of the buttons in the upper right hand corner of this page. You can choose to view the cancels by state, by ‘type’, by year, and simply page through the entire listing of them. The columns can be sorted in any way you desire by clicking on the column name.
Database Field Definitions
| Data Field | Description | Edit Permission |
|---|---|---|
| Cover Front | The bitmap (.jpg, .bmp. .gif, .png) image of the front side of the cover. Preferred scan is 300dpi | Contributor |
| Cover Back | The bitmap (.jpg, .bmp. .gif, .png) image of the back or reverse side of the cover. Preferred scan is 300dpi | Contributor |
| Census ID | Unique Identifier for this cover, assigned by the Administrator | Admin |
| City | Post Office of mailing | Contributor |
| Label Num | The registration number on the Form 1549A label | Contributor |
| Branch | Branch office if not from main Post Office | Contributor |
| State | Uses standard USPS 2 letter abbreviations | Contributor |
| Date | Date cover was mailed; use format MM/DD/YY. Use “?” for digits not known. | Contributor |
| PostmarkYear | 4 digit number the postmark year if known. Has to be between 1906 and 1914, partial years not supported | Contributor |
| PostmarkMonth | 1 or 2 digit number the postmark month if known. Has to be between 1 and 12 | Contributor |
| PostmarkDay | 1 or 2 digit number the postmark day if known. Has to be between 1 and 31 | Contributor |
| Destin City | City where cover is addressed to and sent | Contributor |
| Destin State | State where cover is addressed to and sent; For foreign destinations, this field may be blank | Contributor |
| Destin Country | Country where cover is addressed to and sent | Contributor |
| Ex Office | The USPOD Exchange Office which issued the exchange label on covers to foreign destinations. | Contributor |
| Ex Office Num | The registration number on the exchange label. | Contributor |
| Comments | User provided notes about the cover, special features, etc. | Contributor |
| Released | Flag that indicates the Administrator has reviewed and approved the cover record | Admin |
| ID | Internal system Identifier for each record | System |
| Contributor | Name of DB User who enters a record. | System |
