1861 5¢ Postmasters' Provisional of New Orleans, LA, brown

The New Orleans 5¢ brown postmaster provisional, CSA 62X3, is one of the classic Confederate postmaster provisional issues of 1861. It was created by the New Orleans postmaster, John Leonard Riddell, to prepay the basic 5¢ Confederate letter rate in the months before general‑issue Confederate stamps were available.

When the Confederate States Post Office Department took over on June 1, 1861, the South suddenly lacked valid stamps: U.S. stamps were demonetized and federal postal operations in the South ceased. The Confederate central government did not get its first 5¢ Jefferson Davis general issue into circulation until mid‑October 1861, leaving a gap of several months.

To keep the mails moving, many southern postmasters resorted to local solutions – hand stamped “PAID” markings or locally produced adhesives now called postmaster provisionals. New Orleans, as one of the largest Confederate cities and a major commercial hub, was among the offices that produced such adhesives.

John Leonard Riddell (1807-1865), U.S. postmaster at New Orleans from August 1860 and continuing under the Confederacy, saw the need for local stamps immediately after the Confederate takeover.

In June 1861, Riddell introduced provisional adhesive stamps in 2¢ and 5¢ denominations.  The stamps were produced by John V. Childs, a New Orleans printer, using a woodcut design on sheets bearing an imprint.

The top of the sheet carried a one‑line imprint: “USABLE EXCLUSIVELY IN THE NEW ORLEANS POST OFFICE,” explicitly limiting their postal validity to New Orleans.

The 5¢ brown New Orleans provisional (CSA 62X3) has a denomination of 5 cents, which paid the standard under‑500‑mile Confederate letter rate.

The design shows noticeable crude, engraved‑by‑knife characteristics typical of woodcut provisionals.  The stamp includes Riddell’s name at top and bottom, along with the value and town designation.

These stamps were printed in panes (the 5¢ has been plated; at least one intact pane from the third printing is recorded).

The New Orleans provisionals were used from June 1861 until they were gradually replaced by the Confederate general issues in late 1861-early 1862.

The 5¢ provisional (including 62X3) is seen on mail from mid‑1861 into early 1862, with most use concentrated in 1861.  Use was restricted to originating in New Orleans, but such covers are recorded going to other Confederate states such as Virginia and elsewhere.

After supplies of general issues became adequate (by spring 1862), use of provisionals faded.  New Orleans itself fell to Union forces in April 1862, effectively ending any Confederate postal operations there.