Auxiliary Markings Club

The Auxiliary Markings Club: Exhibits, Awards, Featured Covers, Member Web Pages

The Auxiliary Markings Club, postal-markings.org, seeks to provide a forum for collectors of these fascinating and ubiquitous bits of postal history - either as a primary interest (e.g. pointing fingers) or as adjunct (e.g. part of Prexie Postal History).

Exhibits-Awards-Covers (here)

Philatelic Resources (elsewhere)

EXHIBIT COPIES from the AUXILIARY MARKINGS CLUB

The AMC exhibit copying service has John Hotchner's Auxiliary Markings ten-frame exhibit available for your library at a cost of $16.00 unbound and $18.50 spiral bound (new 2008 prices). The Club offers these copies at cost as a service to our membership. Should you decide to order a copy, do so by ordering on-line (below), by emailing Ralph Nafziger at , or writing Ralph Nafziger, P. O. Box 1476, Albany, OR 97321. Remember that any copy you receive will be a second generation, a copy of a copy. Though not as clear as the initial copy it remains a fine reference.

AMC Member Auxiliary Markings Web Pages

Auxiliary markings web pages by AMC club members. Please contact the webmaster (on "home" page) to add your pages.

Roland Austin's Auxiliary Markings In My Collection
Tom Fortunato's 20th-21st Century US Auxiliary Markings Sampler
John Gordon's John's Modern Postal History

Featured Cover from Zeb Vance

This is the mail for which you sent postage auxiliary marking
(courtesy of Zeb Vance)

This censored letter was mailed from New York on March 3, 1943 to Argentina. I looked at the Auxiliary Markings Record and didn't see the "SPANISH LANGUAGE" handstamp listed. I believe it's obvious that the mark indicates that the letter is in Spanish and was applied to facilitate censoring. However was the mark applied by the sender or was it applied when opened by a non-Spanish speaking censor?.

John Hotchner writes "Believe this would have been placed by the company sending the letter - a business letter more than likely, and would be to facilitate censoring." (July 31, 2007).

Featured Covers from Chris Masters

This is the mail for which you sent postage auxiliary marking
(courtesy of Chris Masters)

"This is the mail / letter / package for which you sent postage" with 1905 Los Angeles duplex unusual Barry Station C.

This is the mail for which you sent postage auxiliary marking
(courtesy of Chris Masters)

"This is the mail for which you sent postage" auxiliary marking 1907 with Oakland duplex and pink (postage) due. Five markings just to collect postage - no wonder the postal workers are busy.

half cent postage due auxiliary marking
(courtesy of Chris Masters)

"Returned for postage. Postage due 1/2 cent" appears to be 1923-1924 from the franking. Looks like the mailer gave up and never remailed the card. A rare Due marking because of the improper 1.5 cent franking?

Huge finger auxiliary marking
(courtesy of Chris Masters)

A huge pink finger auxiliary marking with "OUT" August 13, 1920 for unclaimed general delivery. Can see Return to...Unclaimed...From...------Don't see any OUT on fingers on the website? Mailed San Francisco July 28, 1920 arrived new Orleans August 12, 1920 and OUT (that was fast) the 13th. Large pink "A" and something else I can't read on printed side. Finger is over 3" long and 1 1/4" tall. The printed side scan (below) is also an appropriate subject matter.

Finding missing people postcard back of huge finger auxiliary marking

Featured Cover from Ginny Nightingale

Byrd Antarctic Expedition stamp with delayed auxiliary marking
(cover courtesy of Ginny Nightingale)

"The Byrd Antarctic Issue (Scott 733) was issued in connection with the Byrd Antarctic Expedition of 1933 and for use on leters mailed through the Little America Post Office established at the base camp in the territory of the South Pole. In addition to the postage charge of 3 cents, letters sent by the ships of the expedition to be cancelled in Little America were subject to a service charge of 50 cents each" (Scott Specialized Catalogue of U.S. Stamps).
There is a limited season for incoming and outgoing mail at the South Pole. Letters were sent down for cancellation; if they missed the return trip they had to be held until the following year. Linn's Stamp News (April 15, 2002, page 28), however, indicates that there was a little more to the story (click on article for full size version) ...

Southeastern Stamp Show (September, 2008) - Club Member Awards

Nancy and Douglas Clark
Got Postage?

Auxiliary Marking Club - Award of Merit
Silver medal

Westpex Stamp Show, San Francisco, CA (April, 2007) - Club Member Awards

Dale Forster
Loose Ship Letters of Australia

Auxiliary Marking Club - Award of Merit

Southeastern Stamp Show (September, 2005) - Club Member Awards

Regis Hoffman
Letter to the Stars

Auxiliary Marking Club - Richard B. Graham award
Vermeil medal

Ropex Stamp Show (June, 2005) - Club Member Awards

Alfred Kugel
The Allied Intervention in Russia 1918 - 1925

Auxiliary Marking Club - Award of Merit

Pipex Stamp Show (May, 2005) - Club Member Awards

Ralph Nafziger
First Day Covers in the Mailstream

Auxiliary Marking Club - Award of Merit

Westpex Stamp Show (April, 2005) - Club Member Awards

Peter Baker
Censor Marks, Cachets and Postal Marking of the Free French 1940 - 1945

Auxiliary Marking Club - Award of Merit (first time awarded)

Ropex Stamp Show (June, 2004) - Club Member Awards

(click on award to see enlarged image)

John M. Hotchner
20th Century United States Auxiliary Markings Documenting Delay of, or Inability to Deliver, the Mail: The First Fifty Years

First winner of the Auxiliary Marking Club's Richard B. Graham Award
ROPEX Gold
APS Medal of Excellence 1900-1940
Dusty Millar Award

Ada M. Prill
Uh-Oh - Mistakes in U. S. Auxiliary Markings

First winner of the Auxiliary Marking Club's President's Award
ROPEX Silver

Nancy and Douglas Clark

Free Markings Used in Maine - vermeil
Maine Stampless Period Forwarded Mail - vermeil
P. H. Brennan Hand Delivery Service - silver

Dave Allan Cooper, Sr.
Canadian Pacific Express Uncalled For and Undeliverable Notices

ROPEX Silver

Thomas M. Fortunato
The Diversity of Ceramics and Ceramic Materials

ROPEX Gold
ATA 1st
Hale Award

Gary Hendren
Twisted Caps - Twisted Mails

ROPEX Silver Bronze

Jeffrey Shapiro
ConPHessions of a PHat PHilatelist

ROPEX "Most Popular"
ROPEX Silver Bronze