Auction Detail
3070 – ERIVAN X
- (-) Remove United States of America filter United States of America
- (-) Remove Independent Carriers and Express Companies filter Independent Carriers and Express Companies
- (-) Remove Western Expresses filter Western Expresses
- (-) Remove Independent Carriers and Express Companies filter Independent Carriers and Express Companies
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, San Francisco, 10c green, on neatly re-backed cover front to Glasgow, Scotland, adhesive affixed overtop of hand-colored “Overland via Los Angeles” illustrated stagecoach directive, the “via Los Angeles” crossed-out, cancelled with blue grid and tied by neatly struck blue oval “Pony Express / San Francisco / Nov 7” Running Pony, second strike below, endorsed “Pony Express” in manuscript, black oval “The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company / St. Joseph Mo. / Nov 7” datestamp, entered the mails in Saint Joseph, with November 20 double-circle c.d.s. applied, black “N. York Am. Pkt / Nov 24” c.d.s., likely carried via the North German Lloyd ship “Bremen”, arriving in Southampton on December 6, treated as unpaid and assessed 1sh due in manuscript, vertical fold, else very fine appearance, an exceptionally rare transatlantic Pony Express usage, one of just five recorded and the only example to Scotland, its scarcity enhanced by it being the only recorded example with an “Overland via Los Angeles” direction, among the most significant and visually striking Pony Express covers extant; with 2023 Philatelic Foundation certificate. FKW Census #E38.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, c. 1861, oval “Pony Express / St. Joseph” running horse datestamp (May 2), three strikes on piece, written in manuscript “5$ for ea. letter sent to San Francisco on this ex ERH”, reverse with four strikes of oval “The Central Overland California / & Pike’s Peak / Express Company / St. Joseph. MO.” (April 30), with manuscript notation “Stamp on tickets to Pike’s Peak “Denver City” (?) to go through in 7 - Price $100.00 - ERH”, file folds, unusual.
Wells, Fargo & Co Pony Express, St. Joseph, Missouri, December 6, 1860, clear strike of PONY EXPRESS / ST. JOSEPH / DEC 6 "Running Pony" oval datestamp, on back of free frank cover from Isaac I. Stevens, MC, to W.B. Gosnell, Olympia, Washington Territory, endorsed in Stevens’ hand "Pony Express" at upper left, e"$5.00" and "Paid / J.T.C." in another hand, denoting payment of the express fee, the free frank negating the need for postage to be paid, carried via the westbound Pony Express that departed St. Joseph on December 6 to California, where it was struck with crisp "San Francisco Cal. / Dec / 21 / 1860" c.d.s., partial offset Running Pony strike on front, skillful repair at top, not detracting from the tremendous appeal of this rare and historic cover, sent by a towering figure in the history of Washington Territory; with 1996 Philatelic Foundation certificate; ex Gruys, Twigg-Smith.
(FKW Census W26. Trip WT-59).
Isaac Ingalls Stevens served as the first Governor of Washington Territory from 1853-7, and later as its Delegate to the United States House of Representatives from 1857-61. Having graduated at the top of his class from West Point in 1839, he served with distinction in the Mexican-American War, though his subsequent term as Governor was controversial. Following the First Battle of Bull Run, Stevens was appointed Colonel of the 79th New York Volunteers, later being promoted to General. It was leading the 79th in pursuit retreating Confederate troops that he was killed in the Battle of Chantilly in September, 1862; contemporary newspaper reports recount that, when the General’s body was recovered, he was clenching the regimental flag, which he had recovered from a fallen color bearer earlier in the battle.
Westley B. Gosnell served as Indian Agent under Stevens, later being appointed as Special Indian Agent by President Buchanan. Moving to Olympia following his marriage, he lived on the Squaxon Indian Reservation. His career in public service was extensive and distinguished, with Gosnell having held further roles as a state legislator, Justice of the Peace, and school director. He died in 1897.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $2.00 red, large margins on three sides, clear at right, tied to 10c Nesbitt entire (U16) by crisp blue "Pony Express Sacramento / May 26" oval, endorsed "per Pony Express" in manuscript, carried to St. Joseph, Missouri, where it was struck with neat green "St. Joseph Mo. / Jun / 6" c.d.s., thence to Boston, without backstamps, an exceptionally fresh Pony Express cover; with 1981 Philatelic Foundation Certificate. FKW Census E85. This cover was carried on the May 25 departure from San Francisco, arriving in St. Joseph on June 6. It is one of three recorded examples conveyed on that journey.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $2.00 red, four good to large margins, on 10c Nesbitt entire (U18) to Lucien Birdseye in New York, with two red Wells, Fargo & Co. printed franks overtop green "Freeman & Co's" ribbon frank, adhesive tied by blue oval "Wells, Fargo, & Co Nevada / Jun 24", blue "Pony Express / Sacramento / Jun 27" datestamp alongside, clear "St. Joseph Mo / Jul 8" c.d.s. in green, the stamp with horizontal crease, cover with pressed crease, a most attractive and rare Pony Express cover; ex Dale-Lichtenstein, with 2021 Philatelic Foundation certificate. FWK Census E106.
In 1859, Wells Fargo purchased the Freeman Express Company, and put their envelopes to good use by overprinting the green Freeman frank with the red Wells Fargo frank. Such examples are scarce, with only eight examples recorded, and only four of which bear a $2.00 red franking. This cover was carried via the eastbound Pony Express trip departing San Francisco on Wednesday, June 26, arriving in St. Joseph twelve days later; it is one of only two covers recorded in the Frajola-Walske-Kramer census from this journey. Lucien Birdseye, the recipient of this correspondence, was a prominent New York attorney, who served as a Justice of the New York Supreme Court.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $1.00 red, mostly large to very large margins, clear at upper right, cancelled with crisp large part strike of blue oval "Pony Express / Sacramento / Jul 11", a choice single, very fine.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $1.00 red, complete sheet of forty, in two panes, 4x5, without gum as issued, showing the distinctive "Missing Hoof" flaw in position 9 of the right pane, the front leg of the horse being cut off at the end of the background shading, rather than extending nearly an additional 1mm towards the frameline, the sheet with overall bright and fresh appearance, a few trivial edge flaws including small tear near upper left, five hinge remnants on reverse almost entirely confined to margins, vertical fold between panes, pencil notation on reverse of lower left stamp, very faint CEC (Chapman) handstamp in lower margin, barely touching the two lower right stamps, not detracting from this exceptional and important multiple, showing this distinctive positional variety, one of the small number of complete sheets still extant; signed "Hugo Griebert" in pencil on reverse; ex Hall, Twigg-Smith.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $4.00 black, mostly large margins all around, close but clear at lower left, crisp and fresh impression, paying the quadruple letter rate for a letter of 1.5 to 2 ounces, tied to legal-sized cover by blue oval "Pony Express San Francisco / Aug 10" Running Pony datestamp, manuscript "U.S. Consulate, Honolulu, Hawaii" manuscript origin notation at upper right, confirmed by large red embossed seal on reverse, handed to the trading firm of McRuer & Merill, with dual backstamps of their oval "Forwarded by / McRuer & Merrill / San Francisco", the cover then delivered to Wells Fargo, where it received their blue "Wells, Fargo & Cos Express / SFrco / 10 / Aug" double-circle c.d.s, carried to St. Joseph, Missouri, where it entered the United States mails and was struck with green "St. Joseph Mo. / Aug / 22" c.d.s., then carried onwards via the postal service to the "Hon. Fifth Auditor of The Treasury of the U.S., Washington, D.C." (John C. Underwood), to whom it was sent free of postage as official correspondence, hinge and adhesion remnants to back from prior mounting, some light soiling and wrinkling, ink on front somewhat faded, all of trivial importance given the significance of this rarity, one of only two $4.00 black covers extant, and one of the icons of United States philately; with 2000 Philatelic Foundation certificate, submitted by the Estate of John H. Hall Jr. FKW Census E141
Provenance:
via H.P. Atherton, cover docketed on reverse “H.P. Atherton, 1932, $400”
Dale-Lichtenstein, H.R. Harmer, May, 2004.
Thurston Twigg-Smith, Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, December 5, 2009, lot 36.
The postal history of the Pony Express can be divided into four rate periods, the dates covered under which varied between Eastbound and Westbound routes. During the Third Rate Period, in April, 1861, when Wells Fargo began to act as agent, two adhesive stamps were issued; a $2.00 green, and a $4.00 red, paying the single and double rate per half ounce respectively. Three months later, at the outset of the Fourth Rate Period, and due to the resulting rate reduction, three new adhesives were issued; a $1.00 red, $2.00 green, and $4.00 black, which paid the 1/2oz, 1oz, and 2oz rates. Interestingly, in addition to no United States postage being required, neither was it formally necessary to apply the $4.00 black adhesive; as Frajola, Kramer, and Walske note in The Pony Express: A Postal History “there were no Pony Express fees due since the postal contract specified that five pounds of government mail was entitled to go free on the pony. It is probable that the forwarder was not aware of the provision.”
The forwarder was the firm of McRuer & Merrill of San Francisco, who were extensively engaged in the Hawaiian trade of the period. An advertisement on the front-page of The Polynesian of Honolulu (26 July, 1862) describes them as “Agents of the Regular Dispatch Line of Honolulu Packets” with “particular attention paid to forwarding and transhipment of merchandise, sale of whalemen’s bills, and other exchange, insurance of merchandise or specie under open policies, supplying whaleships, chatering ships, etc.” Their work as agents of the Regular Dispatch Line in that period was further cited in the “Hawaiian Annual for 1931” published by Thomas G. Thrum, which also noted that the agency was later assumed by J.C. Merrill & Co. Interestingly, Henry J. Crocker in his “Hawaiian Numerals” quotes from a 1864 letter from Hawaii’s Postmaster General David Kalakaua, writing to the government’s agent in New York regarding the printing of the 2c vermilion of 1864, noting that the stamps should “when finished, have put up in a case, tightly soldered, and addressed to the Postmaster, Honolulu, care of McRruer & Merrill, San Francisco…as we are nearly out of stamps, an early reply will oblige.”
McRuer & Merrill handled both of the known covers franked with the $4.00 black. In fact, both covers originated in Hawaii, bear cancellations of the same date, and are both addressed to the Hon. Fifth Auditor of the Treasury, though bear different coloured seals on reverse; the cover offered here in red, the other in green.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $1.00 red, mostly good to large margins all around, close but clear at right, bright shade, tied to red Wells, Fargo & Co. printed frank 10c green Nesbitt entire (U15) by blue "Pony Express San Francisco / Sep 7" oval, cover further affixed with two 3c dull red Type II and two 10c green Type V, the 3c adhesives tied by blue Running Pony, they and the balance further postmarked by red New York Foreign Mail Office grid cancellations, to Pietro Martinelli in Maggia, Ticino, Switzerland, reverse with red "New-York Br. Pkt. / Sep 25" c.d.s., front with various accountancy markings, violet "12" manuscript credit mark, boxed red "Aachen 8 10 / Franco" and manuscript "f2" and "6", backstamped Basel (9 Oct), Lucerne (10 Oct) and Locarno, accompanying certificate notes the removal of some staining, else a very fine and dramatic entire, one of only six Pony Express covers recorded to foreign destinations, this being the unique example to Switzerland; with 2003 Philatelic Foundation certificate. FKW Census E155.
Provenance:
Dale-Lichtenstein, H.R. Harmer, May 13, 2004.
Thurston Twigg-Smith, R.A Siegel Auction Galleries, December, 2009
Covers of the Pony Express are among the most renowned in philately. The striking appearance of these postal artifacts cannot help but conjure romantic images of America’s westward expansion. The example offered here is, in our view, among the most attractive Pony Express covers extant, the exceptional 36c franking overpaying by 1c the Prussian Closed Mail rate. The exhaustive Frajola – Kramer – Walske Census records six covers to destinations outside of the United States, with one example recorded to each of England, France, Germany, Prince Edward Island, Scotland, and Switzerland. This is furthermore the only Pony Express cover with this particular franking.
This cover would have been transported on the eastbound Pony Express that departed San Francisco on Saturday, September 7; the only such cover recorded in the FKW Census. It was carried from New York via British Packet, then onwards through Aachen and conveyed via Prussian Closed Mail, traveling south from Basel to its eventual recipient, Pietro Martinelli in Maggia. At this time Australia and the United States, particularly California, became popular destinations for Swiss immigrants from the Maggia Valley. A period of economic hardship in the region combined with the promise of riches that could be had from gold rushes in both countries encouraged many to leave the Ticino area to seek their fortune abroad. Our research uncovered several further covers from various origins in California and Victoria, Australia - also a centre of gold mining - to different addressees in the Ticino area, including an 1862 Wells Fargo advertising cover als to Maggia, attesting to the allure of the gold rush to those who left the region to seek a better life.
A cover of exceptional beauty, and an iconic rarity.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $1.00 red, four mostly large even margins, on red PAID / Wells, Fargo & Co. printed frank 10c green star die stationery cover, postmarked "St. Joseph Mo. / Sep / 14", adhesive tied by faint "Wells, Fargo & Co / Carson City" oval, date indistinct, to Philadelphia, some light uniform wear from use, small gum adhesion on stamp, entire repaired at left, else scarce and fine. (FWK Census E152). This cover, a way letter, was carried on the eastern journey of the Pony Express, departing San Francisco on Saturday, August 31, 1861, arriving in St. Joseph two weeks later on September 14. It is one of only five way letters recorded carried during the Fourth Rate Period, and the only recorded example carried on this trip.
Wells, Fargo & Co, Pony Express, $1.00 red, good to large margins, on 10c green star die stationery entire with red Wells, Fargo & Co printed frank, tied by neatly-struck blue oval "Pony Express / Sacramento / Sep 22", both partially overtop manuscript "Pony Express", postmarked with "Atchison Kan / Oct / 5" double-circle c.d.s., to New York City, endorsed at lower left "Please keep at the / N.Y. Office till called for.", oval "New York Post Office / ADVERTISED" in black and "New York / Oct 15" c.d.s. backstamp, not collected as indicated and struck with oval "P.O. Department Dead Letter Office / Mar 11 / 1862" adhesive with some wrinkles, particularly near "Co.", repaired tears, yet a rare late usage of tremendous visual appeal; ex Knapp, Haas. FKW Census E165.
Wells, Fargo & Co, 1861, 10c green entire (U18), with printed “1/2 Ounce Paid from St. Joseph to Placerville per Pony Express” printed frank in red, script “Agent of Pony Express” alongside, indicia cancelled with black four-ring target, postmarked with “New-York / Oct / 26” double-circle c.d.s., circular “Pony Express / The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak / Express Company / Oct 31 / St. Joseph” datestamp, to De Witt, Kettle & Co in San Francisco, with embossed return address of the company’s New York office on back flap, endorsed “the last kick of the Pony” in manuscript at top, docketed on reverse “the last ‘Pony Express’ received” and dated “Rec’d Nov. 21st 1861”, small piece torn from back corner, some light uniform aging, a striking cover, intended for the final westbound journey of the Pony Express. (FKW Census W70).
Note: The completion of the telegraph line to New York in October, 1861, heralded the end of the Pony Express as the most effective method for the time-sensitive conveyance of news. The cover here, postmarked in New York only a few days after completion of the telegraph, was sent with the intention of transport by Pony Express; news of the service’s cancellation had likely not yet been received. Frajola, Kramer, and Walske conclude that this cover would have been part of the mails which were bagged in St. Joseph by the Express agent as pony mail, but put on the daily overland mail stagecoaches from Atchison. Though ultimately not delivered via Pony Express, it remains a fascinating and remarkable cover, and an artifact of the final days of an iconic era of American history.