Creating a 21st Century Collectors Guide to 1898 Documentary Printed Precancels: Charles Metz in Chambers Stamp Journal in 1951

As mentioned in previous posts, the philatelist Charles Metz was compiling a list of 1898 documentary precancels concurrently to Richard Fullerton, to the point where he published an article in the Chambers Stamp Journal in November, 1951 with a list and narrative material.  Metz's article did not provide the kind of articulation that Fullerton's list provides or images of the cancels.  But it is clear that there was more than one effort to compile an inventory of this material in the mid-20th century.  

Oddly, Metz is mentioned in Fullerton's acknowledgements but only at the very end, as if he was minor player in the work to document these cancels.  And while it may have been that he only played a minor role in Fullerton's work, it was clear that his work meant something to the community of revenue collectors.  

Metz's work in Chambers Stamp Journal was reprinted at least twice in The American Revenuer, as early as 1948, years before Fullerton had anything published on this subject.  Metz did not discriminate by perforation type, unlike Fullerton, and he limited his compilation only to steam railroads, omitting express companies and street railways.

In the article below, Metz provides background to some of the cancels, initially by introducing us to Mr. D. S. Turney, who had a substantial collection of bills of lading with railroad printed precancels, and was in possession of what is now known to be one of the rarest of the 1898 railroad precancels, that of the Chicago, Fort Madison & Des Moines Railroad.  

Turney's story of the Chicago, Fort Madison & Des Moines cancel:

"I have corresponded quite a bit with several of the better known collectors of these issues, such as Chappell, Harold Field, Don Lighton, etc., regarding these issues, and have one item which I have never seen listed, nor have any of the above men heard of it.  This is the printed precancel on the blue documentary battleship of the CFM&DMMRR.  The copy I have is on an original bill of lading of the CB&QRR used in January 1901.  Since this is right in my own backyard, a little investigation locally, plus the kindness of the CB&QRR in Chicago brought out the interesting facts that this was a short line that in its prime extended from Fort Madison, Iowa, northwestward to a junction with the CB&QRR near Batavia, Iowa (12 miles west of my home). 

"The short line was originally three foot gauge, which was standardized about 1890, and on January 1, 1900 the entire road, 71 miles long, was leased to the CB&Q.  Exactly a year later, the CB&Q bought complete ownership of the road through purchases of securities and its identity as the CFM&DMRR ceased to exist.  My conclusion is that the CB&Q, which was fairly prolific in the use of printed precancels on the one cent blue on its leased and subsidiary lines, also caused precancels to be made for the short line after it assumed the lease in January 1900.  Probably these precancels were used during 1900 and the remainders used in 1901 after the CB&Q became owner of the railroad.  

Metz's Chambers article continued:

So both Clarence Chappell and Charles Metz were ahead of the curve when it came to pulling together a list of these precancels, but Mr. Fullerton's work has become the reference standard.