posted 08-08-2010 12:14 PM               

Space Cover #69, Unofficial Space First Day Covers (FDCs)

All cover collectors are familiar with the term/abbreviation "FDC," which stands for "First Day Cover," and FDCs typically have a slogan cancel that reads: "First Day of Issue."

When a new stamp is first issued, it typically has one (occasionally more than one) official first day of issue city, which usually relates to the person or event that the stamp commemorates, and is on sale only in that city on that day.

After the stamp's premiere in its official first day of issue city, the next day it then goes on sale at post offices all across the country.

While FDCs have been popular for many years, there has also been collecting interest in covers called "Unofficial First Day Covers." Simply, unofficial FDCs are covers canceled on the first day of issue of a particular stamp, but in locations other than the official First Day of Issue city. Ideally, such Unofficial FDCs are canceled in cities/towns that have some connection to the person or event that the stamp is issued for.

For example, when the famous 10-cent First Man on the Moon stamp was issued on September 9, 1969 in Washington, DC, enthusiastic and enterprising collectors and dealers bought quantities of the moonlanding stamps and then had the stamps taken around the country that day to be canceled in relevant cites, such as Wapakoneta, Ohio, the hometown of Neil Armstrong.

Such a cover is not shown here, but above are two unofficial moonlanding FDCs, one canceled at Titusville, FL, and the other at Cape Canaveral, FL (with their cachets from artwork by famous cartoonist, Milton Caniff).

And two other unofficial FDCs, with one at Ellington AFB, FL for the Skylab stamp first day of issue (with the official city being Houston, TX) and one of the eight "Space Achievement" stamps canceled at Cape Canaveral, FL (with KSC being the official city).

Unofficial FDC collecting can be very interesting and surely there are huge numbers of unofficial FDCs to search for and collect for the large number of space stamps issued through the years.

posted 08-20-2010 09:30 AM               

The first one is a FDC of the $2.40 priority mail stamp cancelled Kennedy Space Center (first day city- Washington, DC)

The next one is a FDC of the $3 priority mail stamp showing Challenger cancelled Titusville, Fl. (first day city Anaheim, CA)

posted 08-22-2010 11:05 AM               

The bottom cover is another $2.40 Apollo 11 20th anniversary moonlanding stamp unofficial FDC (stamp designed by occasional SCOTW contributor Chris Calle) with four unofficial cancels from KSC, Titusville, Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island, FL.

posted 08-23-2010 09:21 AM               

Australia has a slightly different emphasis than the US with regard to FDCs. All post offices have a general FDC postmarker along with their normal postmarker, either of which can be used on the first day of any stamp issue.

While the situation has changed over the years, the current situation (starting in 1985) is that, in addition to the above, the PO issues a special National FDI Postmark for each issue. In addition the PO may issue a temporary pictorial postmark for towns with a special association with the subject depicted on the stamp.

Thus the National FDI Postmark is the closest we have to an official FDI postmark and all the others are the closest we have to an unofficial postmark.

The first cover below is the National FDI postmark for Australia's Halley's Comet stamp while the second is a temporary pictorial postmark for the same stamp and the third is a standard non-FDI postmark.

posted 08-26-2010 09:38 PM               

The above cover from Jackson Mich. is the birthplace of Lt. Col. Al Worden, the Command Module Pilot of Apollo 15.

The above cover from Hadley New York is the Apollo 15 moon landing site of Hadley Rille/Apennines.