Spread eagle handstamp

This marking stamp represents a figural linen marker. Other popular designs were 'eagle and stars' and 'kissing doves'. While this device may or may not have been used to postmark mail, it is representative of similar marking devices that were.

Prior to the 1890s, postmasters of small offices were required to supply their own postmarking equipment at their own expense. Linen markers were less expensive and more attractive than marking stamps from postal supply houses. They are made from molded type metal with a center mortise. A small, wood bulb handle was pressed onto the shaft that extended from the mold. Individual type characters were set within the center cavity to spell out the name of a town and state and then held in place by the end-mounted set screw. Month, date, and year type were not set into the mortise. Instead, the date was ordinarily added by pen-and-ink manuscript notation.

Where this page came from

This page was imported from Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Released by the Smithsonian Institution under CC0 through Smithsonian Open Access.

Nobody has written it yet — it is the source material at a new address, which is why search engines are asked to skip it and why no one earns from it. It is up for grabs: take it on, and it is yours to rewrite and to earn from.