NJPHS Featured Articles
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1798 Postmaster Certificate of Appointment From New Germantown, NJ
By Mike Ludeman
One of the key functions of the early General Post Office was the identification and appointment of Deputy Postmasters to operate post offices which served as the interface between postal patrons and the postal system. The ongoing task of appointments was necessary because of the death of postmasters, the resignation or relocation of the postmasters as the country expanded, and even the failure of postmasters to perform their assigned duties. These appointments were the responsibility of the Postmaster General and his assistants.
JERSEY CITY TO JAPAN: The Odyssey of a 19th Century Missionary Cover
By John A. Trosky
Since the dawn of organized religion, proselytizing and spreading the faith has been an integral part of the theological doctrines in many faiths around the world. Missionaries were sent to foreign lands to convert or (some would say) indoctrinate the locals who may have adhered to their own religion which was unlike those of the missionaries.
1815 POSTAL SURCHARGE LETTER
By Arne Englund
The 1815 Postal Surcharge letter discussed here is a very interesting combination of post-War of 1812 postal rates, Philadelphia and New Jersey history, and, at the same time, a number of very elusive clues. A 50% postal surcharge had been enacted in 1815 to help recoup some of the massive debt incurred by the War of 1812. The letter itself has War of 1812-related content, regarding a member of the military. It was written October 25, 1815 at Philadelphia, by an Alexander Morrison, and addressed to a Jacob Harris, in Hardwick Township, Sussex County, NJ., informing Harris that his son, who is unnamed in the letter, had drowned while bathing at the “picket warf.”
NEW JERSEY’S PIONEER AIR MAIL FLIGHTS
by Robert G. Rose
Within a decade of the Wright Brothers first flight of an airplane at Kitty Hawk in 1903, aviation advanced quickly. Beginning in 1910, mail was authorized to be carried on flights at aviation meets, exhibitions and demonstrations. In 1911, Congress appropriated $50,000 in order to officially sanction a series of aerial mail trials. By 1912, the Post Office had authorized 31 flights for short-haul experimental air mail delivery in 16 different states.
On the Road to Logg Gaol – The History of Johnsonburg
by Jean R. Walton
Along the Johnsonburg-Allamuchy Road (County Route 612) is an historic marker – much like Benjamin Franklin’s post road mileposts – which tells the traveler he is approaching Logg Gaol. The sign alongside indicates the stone was erected in 1754. Why would Logg Gaol have warranted such a marker, on what today is a back road? The sign explains that Logg Gaol was the original county seat of Sussex County. Logg Gaol became today’s Johnsonburg in Warren County, one of today’s “forgotten New Jersey towns.” But it once was an important crossroads and a mail center. This article explains its former stature
THE BIRTH OF NEW JERSEY’S POST
By Vernon R. Morris, Jr., MD
New to philately and first noted by Roland Cipolla, is a 1721 cover to New York, Figure 1, with manuscript 6d in the upper right corner, Figure 2. The internal dateline revealed a very early September 27, 1721 date, Figure 3. The letter is handwritten from Sherowesbury, 1 Figure 4. Manuscript 6d was indeed consistent with Crown post rates during 1721. Although no provincial colony of origin had been cited, important collateral information about the addressee, sender, and postal zone may be very helpful for that determination.
