Chappell/Joyce vs Joyce/Buford: The American Medicine Company

Here is a second example contrasting the 1950s compiled list of proprietary printed cancels by Chappell/Joyce with the late 20th century version from the Joyce/Buford collections.  The American Medicine Company has two cancels listed by Joyce/Chappell:

Joyce/Chappell cancel list

AMERICAN

SEPT.  15  1899.

MEDICINE

The Joyce/Buford data has only one additional cancel added: an invert of the December 15 cancel.  However, the example above shows there is a stamp undocumented in the J/B list.  The stamp above has a period after the month; the September 15 date below has a note that its known copies have no period after the month. 

Joyce/Buford data:

American Medicine Company 

New York, NY  

Type P 1               CJ Type 1                

5/8c       SEPT. 15, 1898.  Black      R             No Pd after Month

                DEC. 15, 1898.    Black      R            

                DEC. 15, 1898.    Black      R             Invert

This is a much simpler contrast that the one for Abbott Alkaloidal.  But there are still issues to resolve.  There is no substitute for actually handling or seeing the stamps in person to try to resolve the difference between the list at the top of this post, the list at the bottom, and the one example that I have in my possession in between.  There is lots of work to do and lots to share.

Abbott Alkaloidal Handstamps and Joyce/Buford Lists

In yesterday's Abbott Alkaloidal post, I mentioned that the Joyce/Buford data contains listings for handstamps for most companies.  The handstamp list was not posted or discussed yesterday.  But last night, Bob Hohertz sent in the scan above of a handstamp cancel from Abbott Alkaloidal.  So I figure it is a good idea to show the J/B handstamp data (UBCJ stands for "Unlisted by Chappell Joyce):

Type H 1               UBCJ                                     

1/8c       DEC 10 1898        Violet    R            

3/8c       DEC 24 1898        Violet    R            

Type H 2               UBCJ                                     

1/4c       FEB 3 1899           Violet    R            

                MAR 14 1900      Violet    R            

3/8c       FEB 3 1899           Violet    R            

                AUG 2 1900         Violet    R            

                AUG 10 1900      Blue       R            

                JAN 29 1901        Violet    HH         

5/8c       SEP 25 1899         Violet    R            

                JAN 18 1900        Violet    R             This is the stamp shown above

                FEB 20 1900         Violet    HH         

                MAR 14 1900      Violet    HH         

                JULY 10 1900       Violet    HH         

                SEP 26 1900         Violet    HH         

                NOV 12 1900      Violet    HH         

1c            APR 7 1900          Violet    R            

                APR 26 1900        Violet    R            

1 1/4c    APR 11 1899        Violet    R            

                JUL 5 1899           Violet    R            

                SEP 12 1899         Violet    R            

                SEP 25 1899         Violet    R             Double

                OCT 26 1899        Violet    R            

                NOV 24 1899      Violet    R            

                JAN 20 1900        Violet    R            

                JAN 26 1900        Violet    R            

                JUN 22 1900        Violet    HH         

                AUG 27 1900      Violet    HH         

                SEP 24 1900         Violet    HH         

                OCT 5 1900          Violet    HH         

                OCT 9 1900          Violet    HH         

                NOV 6 1900         Violet    HH         

                MAY 13 1901      Violet    HH         

2c            NOV 7 1899         Blue       R            

                26-Feb  Violet    R             No Year

2 1/2c    FEB 1 1899           Violet    R            

                APR 17 1899        Blue       R            

                SEP 21 1899         Blue       R            

                JAN 18 1900        Blue       R            

                MAR 14 1900      Blue       R            

                JUN 12 1900        Blue       HH         

                SEP 1 1900           Violet    HH         

                SEP 13 1900         Blue       HH         

                JAN 7 1901          Violet    HH         

5c            SEP 19 1899         Violet    R            

                DEC 20 1899        Blue       R            

                JUN 12 1900        Violet    R            

                JUN 20 1900        Blue       R            

                NOV 5 1900         Violet    R            

As you might know, the website Battleship Revenues is far more authoritative on proprietary handstamps than anything you are ever likely to find on this site, and I recommend that anyone interested in the subject purchase a copy of The Battleship Desk Reference (BDR), or make use of the online database that draws from the BDR.

The Chappell/Joyce list occasionally includes handstamps, as defined originally by Clarence Chappell.  Joyce maintained the same protocol of including the handstamps in his list of companies that printed private dies and printed cancels for the updated 1950s list.  For example, listings for Antikamnia include several handstamp types prior to the listings for printed cancels, such that Chappell/Joyce lists Antikamnia handstamps for types 1 through 4, and does not begin to list printed cancels until type 5.  I have always found this situation very confusing, and apparently, by the time the Joyce/Buford data was put into form, so did its maker find the combined handstamp and printed types confusing.  Hence, the printed cancels in the Joyce/Buford data receive their own type "P" designation, leading to labels of types P1, P2..., and handstamps receive a similar designation with an "H".

As Bob Mustacich has demonstrated at Battleship Revenues, the field of proprietary handstamp cancels is nearly an inexhaustible one for the collector.  These space will look at these cancels on occasion, but not as a matter of regular practice.

Chappell/Joyce vs Joyce/Buford: Abbott Alkaloidal Company

This past Tuesday, I raised the difficulties posed in trying to update the Chappell/Joyce Printed Cancels list in view of new data presented in the Joyce/Buford data sets.  In this post I examine that difficulty with the first company listed in the Chappell/Joyce list:  Abbott Alkaloidal. 

Abbott Alkaloidal is the predecessor of Abbott Laboratories, an S&P 500 component, and a very large 21st century pharmaceutical firm.  But whatever its future success after the pure food and drug laws of the early 20th century, the mid-20th century Chappell/Joyce list of Abbott Alkaloidal's printed cancels was not so successful or complete.  To wit:

The Chappell/Joyce entry for Abbott Alkaloidal shows the existence of a single, 1c proprietary, cancelled on September 19, 1898.  To understand the problem, here are the the cancels documented to exist in the newer Joyce/Buford spreadsheets:

The above list comes from the Joyce/Buford spreadsheet files.  And it shows far more than one printed cancel produced by Abbott Alkaloidal.  Obviously, sometime after the 1950s, a whole bunch more Abbott Alkaloidal cancels came to light for the compiler of this second list.  The compiler labels the cancels as type P1, or printed type 1, as the same lists also include handstamp types labeled as H1, 2, 3...  In addition, the label CJ Type 1 refers to the Chappell Joyce type from the 1950s list.

I only have three examples of these cancels to display in this post:

 

 

It is clear to me that merely posting the C/J lists against the J/B is a useful activity.  Over time, more complete listings with color examples like those above can be made available.  But this is merely the first company to be reviewed this way.  I think I will revisit some of the companies already posted on this site, like Hobron or Anglo American Drug, and see what the J/B lists have in store. 

Those posts are coming soon.