Return to Sender

A small selection of items from the 1980s that had to be returned to sender from Weston-super-Mare, Bridgwater, Burnham-on-Sea and Yeovil.

 

"MINEHEAD SO / SOM" Skeleton from February-April 1909

This Minehead skeleton cancel is known used from 19th February to 11th April 1909, when it was in use between the Minehead squared circle and the double circle (Dulwich) cancels.

Here are two variants on this cancel, the first from the day before the previously earliest known usage, the 18th February.  The skeleton cancel has a dot between the S and the O in "SO" and a hyphen between the S and the O in "SOM".

The second variant is at the end of the known usage period when the S in "SO" is missing.  Here are two examples from 8th and 10th April (the second not as clear as the first).

Taunton Sub-Offices Barred Numeral cancels - Williton, Dunster, Minehead

A number of sub-offices of Taunton used 1844-style or 3HOS numeric cancels.

Below are examples of the horizontal oval cancels - unfortunately I don't have any examples of the three-bar vertical oval duplex cancels.  Williton (post office number 777) just had the one 1844-style cancel.

Dunster also just had the one 1844-style cancel.

Minehead had an 1844-style cancel ...

... and another three-bar horizontal oval single cancel (3HOS) issued on 7th October 1862.

Taunton three-bar Vertical Oval Duplex (3VOD)

Finally in August 1884 a three-bar Vertical Oval Duplex (3VOD) cancel was issued.

Initially the time in the town die was in "Special Code" (where the time of collection was represented by a single letter of the alphabet).

Then from December 1895 the collection time was in clear.  This Letter Card illustrates all three ways that the collection time was represented in the postmark.  the Kingston handstamp on the reverse has the time in "Special Code" (a single letter), the Taunton duplex has the time in clear, and the Clevedon receiving mark has the time in "Clock Code".

Taunton 4VOD cancel, Dies 4, 5 & 6

Here are some examples of Die 4, known from 11th January 1881.

And some examples of Die 5, known from 5th May 1879.

And finally Die 6, known in March 1884.

Taunton 4VOD cancel, Dies 2 & 3

A number of other Taunton 4VOD dies are known.  It has not yet been possible to identify which are recuts and which are original dies.

Here is an example of Die 2, issued on 30th August 1869, from March 1872.

Die 3, issued on 18th July 1870, is known in two states - with the final "N" of "TAUNTON" complete, and with the final "N" clipped.  Here are some examples of both states.

The final "N" becomes clipped some time between October 1876 and October 1877.

Taunton Vertical Oval Duplex - 4VOD Die 1-3, 1-4, 1-5 (& 1-6)

Here are examples of the remaining recuts of  Die 1 - with the exception of the last, Die 1-6, which I do not have an example of (it is known used in March 1896).

Taunton Vertical Oval Duplex - 4VOD Die 1-1 & 1-2

Following the three-bar Circular Duplex, Taunton was issued with four-bar Vertical Oval Duplex (4VOD) cancels.  A number of dies were issued.

The first 4VOD was recut five times, making six cancels in all.  To start with, here are examples of the first two, Die 1-1 (the initial die) and Die 1-2 (the first recut).

On Die 1-2, to begin with the tail on the 2nd "T" in "TAUNTON" was complete.

Between September and November 1874 the tail on the 2nd "T" disappears.

Taunton Circular Duplex Cancels - Die 2

Taunton's second 3CD die, Die 2-1, was issued on 5th January 1959, and its recut, Die 2-2, was issued on 12th January 1865.  I don't have any examples of the recut die, Die 2-2, which is only known used in September 1868.

Here are a number of examples of Die 2-1 from March 1859 to May 1864.