Card Proofs of the
19th Century

Official Issues
1873

The use of stamps by departments of the federal government was mandated by an Act of Congress, approved on March 3, 1873. The Postmaster General ordered their preparation and the stamps went into use on July 1, 1873.⁵⁰  

Card proofs were prepared, as were all other issues, and printed in the six printings conducted by the American Bank Note Company, using the dies they inherited from the Continental Bank Note Company upon their merger in 1879. The colors used, like the regularly issued stamps, are by department and color specific to that department. Each department will be listed and shown as a group.

Department of Agriculture
1873

The following information is provided for those proofs prepared for the Department of Agriculture:

Scott Number	Denomination	Color
O1P4	One cent	Yellow
O2P4	Two cents	Yellow
O3P4	Three cents	Yellow
O4P4	Six cents	Yellow
O5P4	Ten cents	Yellow
O6P4	Twelve cents	Yellow
O7P4	Fifteen cents	Yellow
O8P4	Twenty Four cents	Yellow
O9P4	Thirty cents	Yellow

Of interest is the original envelope, pictured here, which these proofs would have originally been packaged in for sale. This type of envelope was used for all issues and labeled appropriately. There are differences in the style of lettering between the five printings, allowing identification as which printing the envelope originated with. Unfortunately, it is not that easy to tie the proofs themselves, with a couple of exceptions, to the different printings.

Executive
1873

The following information is provided for those proofs prepared for the Executive Department:

Scott Number	Denomination	Color
O10P4	One cent	Carmine
O11P4	Two cents	Carmine
O12P4	Three cents	Carmine
O13P4	Six cents	Carmine
O14P4	Ten cents	Carmine

Department of the Interior
1873

The following information is provided for those proofs prepared for the Department of the Interior:

Scott Number	Denomination	Color
O15P4	One cent	Vermillion
O16P4	Two cents	Vermillion
O17P4	Three cents	Vermillion
O18P4	Six cents	Vermillion
O19P4	Ten cents	Vermillion
O20P4	Twelve cents	Vermillion
O21P4	Fifteen cents	Vermillion
O22P4	Twenty Four cents	Vermillion
O23P4	Thirty cents	Vermillion
O24P4	Ninety cents	Vermillion

⁵⁰ Luff, p. 201.

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