#11X1 – 1845 5c Black, St. Louis Bear on Greenish Wove Paper

Condition
Price
Qty
- Used Stamp(s) (small flaws)
Ships in 1-3 business days.i$5,850.00
$5,850.00

 Own Highly Sought-After St. Louis Bears Postmaster Provisional Today

This postmaster provisional is over 175 years old and is a piece of history you hold in your hand.  It survived a trip through the mail system as well as the ravages of time.  It has one or two small imperfections (not unusual for a stamp of its age and history) that don't detract from the stamp's beauty or collectibility, but do allow us to offer it at a nice savings.   Most of the St. Louis Bears stamps in used condition feature pen cancels, with hand stamp cancels (like the one I'm offering you today) being unusual and highly sought-after.  This particular stamp is a 5¢ (see below for type descriptions) from the first printing of the St. Louis Bears stamps and was printed on greenish paper.  Only one available, order now to be sure it ends up in your collection. Enjoy the Thrill of Owning a Stamp Used on Mail Before The United States' First Federal Postage Stamps In early November 1845, John M. Wimer (postmaster of St. Louis, Missouri) had two stamps printed – a 5¢ and 10¢.  The design pictured the Missouri coat of arms and great seal with its famous bear figures.  (Missouri's great seal was designed by William G. Pettus who was said to have pictured bears in honor of "Missouri citizens' rugged durability.")   A single copper plate was engraved with six subjects (three vertical 5¢ stamps and three vertical 10¢ stamps) by J.M. Kershaw, proprietor of the Western Card and Seal Company of St. Louis.  The 5¢ stamp covered the postage rate for letters under 1/2 oz traveling less than 300 miles, while the 10¢ stamp covered the rate for letters traveling over 300 miles.  Each additional 1/2 oz required an added 5¢ or 10¢. Postmaster Wimer created the St. Louis Bears provisionals to allow postal customers to pay ahead and avoid long lines and wait times at the post office.  Instead, they could simply affix their stamp and drop their letter in a box anytime, even after business hours. Discover the Different Printings and Stamp Varieties  The first printing of St. Louis Bears Postmaster Provisionals sold out and needed to be reprinted to keep up with demand.  Postmaster Wimer decided it might be beneficial to include a 20¢ design this time, so the engraver (Kershaw) erased the "5" from the top two stamps in the left row of the plate and added a "20" to these positions instead. The 5¢ denominations of the second printing soon sold out, and Postmaster Wimer decided to remove the 20¢ denominations from the plate and put the two 5¢ denominations back again as demand for the 20¢ stamps had been lower than expected. Each printing used a different paper, creating a range of different stamp types.  As of 2022, Scott Catalogue only officially recognizes eight of these, but, in reality, there are actually 20 (six plate positions with three printings equals 18 varieties plus the two 20¢ denominations on greenish paper).  Take a look below for a breakdown of each stamp type and how to tell the difference between them: Stamp Types From Original State of the Plate – Printed on Greenish Paper 5¢ type I – the haunches of both bears virtually touch the frameline of the stamp
5¢ type II – the haunch of the left bear is well away from the frameline, the right bear is unchanged from type I
5¢ type III – the haunches of both bears are now visibly clear of the framelines

10¢ type I – there are three single curved lines (dashes) below "Post Office"
10¢ type II – there are three pairs of curved lines below "Post Office"
10¢ type III – three dots have been added between the pairs of curved lines, the top dash in the middle has been removed

Stamp Types From First Alteration of the Plate – Printed on Greenish OR Gray Lilac Paper

20¢ type I – same as the 5¢ type I from the original state of the plate
20¢ type II – same as the 5¢ type II from the original state of the plate.  You'll also notice the top paw of the right bear was almost removed during the process of changing the "5" to "20."

5¢ type III – virtually unchanged from the original state of the plate.  (This type printed on grayish lilac paper – Scott #11X4 – is the only St. Louis Bear stamp to have been printed from just one position of the plate, making it far rarer than many realize.)

10¢ types – unchanged from original state of the plate

Stamp Types From Second Alteration of the Plate – Printed on Pelure Paper 5¢ type I – nearly the same as type I from the original state of the plate, but with the "5" noticeably lower
5¢ type II – nearly the same as type II from the original state of the plate, however, the paw which had been damaged during the change to "20" was partly reinstated (without shading)
5¢ type III – nearly the same as type III from the original state of the plate, but with the dot in the ball of the "5" being much larger.

10¢ types – unchanged from original state of the plate  
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 Own Highly Sought-After St. Louis Bears Postmaster Provisional Today

This postmaster provisional is over 175 years old and is a piece of history you hold in your hand.  It survived a trip through the mail system as well as the ravages of time.  It has one or two small imperfections (not unusual for a stamp of its age and history) that don't detract from the stamp's beauty or collectibility, but do allow us to offer it at a nice savings.  

Most of the St. Louis Bears stamps in used condition feature pen cancels, with hand stamp cancels (like the one I'm offering you today) being unusual and highly sought-after.  This particular stamp is a 5¢ (see below for type descriptions) from the first printing of the St. Louis Bears stamps and was printed on greenish paper.  Only one available, order now to be sure it ends up in your collection.

Enjoy the Thrill of Owning a Stamp Used on Mail Before The United States' First Federal Postage Stamps

In early November 1845, John M. Wimer (postmaster of St. Louis, Missouri) had two stamps printed – a 5¢ and 10¢.  The design pictured the Missouri coat of arms and great seal with its famous bear figures.  (Missouri's great seal was designed by William G. Pettus who was said to have pictured bears in honor of "Missouri citizens' rugged durability.")  

A single copper plate was engraved with six subjects (three vertical 5¢ stamps and three vertical 10¢ stamps) by J.M. Kershaw, proprietor of the Western Card and Seal Company of St. Louis.  The 5¢ stamp covered the postage rate for letters under 1/2 oz traveling less than 300 miles, while the 10¢ stamp covered the rate for letters traveling over 300 miles.  Each additional 1/2 oz required an added 5¢ or 10¢.

Postmaster Wimer created the St. Louis Bears provisionals to allow postal customers to pay ahead and avoid long lines and wait times at the post office.  Instead, they could simply affix their stamp and drop their letter in a box anytime, even after business hours.

Discover the Different Printings and Stamp Varieties 

The first printing of St. Louis Bears Postmaster Provisionals sold out and needed to be reprinted to keep up with demand.  Postmaster Wimer decided it might be beneficial to include a 20¢ design this time, so the engraver (Kershaw) erased the "5" from the top two stamps in the left row of the plate and added a "20" to these positions instead.

The 5¢ denominations of the second printing soon sold out, and Postmaster Wimer decided to remove the 20¢ denominations from the plate and put the two 5¢ denominations back again as demand for the 20¢ stamps had been lower than expected.

Each printing used a different paper, creating a range of different stamp types.  As of 2022, Scott Catalogue only officially recognizes eight of these, but, in reality, there are actually 20 (six plate positions with three printings equals 18 varieties plus the two 20¢ denominations on greenish paper).  Take a look below for a breakdown of each stamp type and how to tell the difference between them:

Stamp Types From Original State of the Plate – Printed on Greenish Paper

5¢ type I – the haunches of both bears virtually touch the frameline of the stamp
5¢ type II – the haunch of the left bear is well away from the frameline, the right bear is unchanged from type I
5¢ type III – the haunches of both bears are now visibly clear of the framelines

10¢ type I – there are three single curved lines (dashes) below "Post Office"
10¢ type II – there are three pairs of curved lines below "Post Office"
10¢ type III – three dots have been added between the pairs of curved lines, the top dash in the middle has been removed

Stamp Types From First Alteration of the Plate – Printed on Greenish OR Gray Lilac Paper

20¢ type I – same as the 5¢ type I from the original state of the plate
20¢ type II – same as the 5¢ type II from the original state of the plate.  You'll also notice the top paw of the right bear was almost removed during the process of changing the "5" to "20."

5¢ type III – virtually unchanged from the original state of the plate.  (This type printed on grayish lilac paper – Scott #11X4 – is the only St. Louis Bear stamp to have been printed from just one position of the plate, making it far rarer than many realize.)

10¢ types – unchanged from original state of the plate

Stamp Types From Second Alteration of the Plate – Printed on Pelure Paper

5¢ type I – nearly the same as type I from the original state of the plate, but with the "5" noticeably lower
5¢ type II – nearly the same as type II from the original state of the plate, however, the paw which had been damaged during the change to "20" was partly reinstated (without shading)
5¢ type III – nearly the same as type III from the original state of the plate, but with the dot in the ball of the "5" being much larger.

10¢ types – unchanged from original state of the plate