Looks to me like this is the soon to be designed postmark for "Time Travel Mail" -- posted in Westbury August 30 2024 and arrived August 30 2021.
A soon-to-be-here method of sending yourself those reminders you wish you remembered, after the fact.
Roy
I am sorry but I did not understand your post at all.
Take a look at the year date in the "unusual cancel".
Roy
Had not noticed that. What does it mean though? Just a mistake by the post-office?
Do you think this is a post-office applied mark or is it something else? A fantasy mark?
The cancel indicates 30 Aug 2021 on the machine cancel which was when it went into the post-office system. It was delivered 2 Sep (no mark). And the reddish circular mark has the wrong year but the right day and the right location and the right zip code.
I've seen this type of postmark a few times, and the Postmark Society newsletter had an article on it within the past few years. Not common, but being used by a bunch of post offices across the country. Cover is worth saving! If it was New Jersey I'd arm wrestle you for it!
banknoteguy - To answer some of your questions...
Yes, this is a real post office applied cancel, not a fantasy.
Yes, these cancels are uncommon, not all post offices use this style of cancelling device.
These cancels have been around for awhile, see the link below for an example from my collection from San Jose, California from 1996:
https://stamporama.com/discboard/disc_main.php?action=20&id=18742#139622
Perhaps this is a new cancelling device for the Westbury, New York post office, and the clerk did not know that the year needed to be set to 2021, and it was dialed to 2024 by mistake.
Here is a link to a similar postmark from Rockville, Maryland:
https://www.stampcommunity.org/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=78022
The best information on your cancelling device comes from John Becker on the link below. From the thread, it appears to be a Model N96 (Custom Made) Canceller from "Postal Products Unlimited."
https://www.stampcommunity.org/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=65934
I think these cancels are very collectable, and thanks for showing your cover.
Linus
Thanks for all the info! I did some searching on the Postal Products Unlimited site. It looks to me like the N96 was a very old model. They now sell it as:
My pleasure, banknoteguy.
Nice that Postal Products Unlimited is still in business.
In this time of Sharpie lines, messy inkjet cancels, and no cancel at all, we would love to see covers cancelled like yours land in our daily mail.
Linus
I got this in the mail yesterday. Very clean/clear markings -- that in itself is unusual but the circular Westbury NY post mark is kind of neat. I did not get it right away, I thought the icon above Westbury NY was a tree! Hahaha. Only after I was trying to figure out the day did it occur to me that it was a pointer the day! Duhhhh.
Is this an uncommon cancel? I have gotten hundreds, maybe even thousands of mailings in the last couple years but I don't think I have ever seen another like this. Anybody know of other cities who use such a device?
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
Looks to me like this is the soon to be designed postmark for "Time Travel Mail" -- posted in Westbury August 30 2024 and arrived August 30 2021.
A soon-to-be-here method of sending yourself those reminders you wish you remembered, after the fact.
Roy
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
I am sorry but I did not understand your post at all.
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
Take a look at the year date in the "unusual cancel".
Roy
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
Had not noticed that. What does it mean though? Just a mistake by the post-office?
Do you think this is a post-office applied mark or is it something else? A fantasy mark?
The cancel indicates 30 Aug 2021 on the machine cancel which was when it went into the post-office system. It was delivered 2 Sep (no mark). And the reddish circular mark has the wrong year but the right day and the right location and the right zip code.
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
I've seen this type of postmark a few times, and the Postmark Society newsletter had an article on it within the past few years. Not common, but being used by a bunch of post offices across the country. Cover is worth saving! If it was New Jersey I'd arm wrestle you for it!
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
banknoteguy - To answer some of your questions...
Yes, this is a real post office applied cancel, not a fantasy.
Yes, these cancels are uncommon, not all post offices use this style of cancelling device.
These cancels have been around for awhile, see the link below for an example from my collection from San Jose, California from 1996:
https://stamporama.com/discboard/disc_main.php?action=20&id=18742#139622
Perhaps this is a new cancelling device for the Westbury, New York post office, and the clerk did not know that the year needed to be set to 2021, and it was dialed to 2024 by mistake.
Here is a link to a similar postmark from Rockville, Maryland:
https://www.stampcommunity.org/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=78022
The best information on your cancelling device comes from John Becker on the link below. From the thread, it appears to be a Model N96 (Custom Made) Canceller from "Postal Products Unlimited."
https://www.stampcommunity.org/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=65934
I think these cancels are very collectable, and thanks for showing your cover.
Linus
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
Thanks for all the info! I did some searching on the Postal Products Unlimited site. It looks to me like the N96 was a very old model. They now sell it as:
re: Unusual postmark (or is it common?)
My pleasure, banknoteguy.
Nice that Postal Products Unlimited is still in business.
In this time of Sharpie lines, messy inkjet cancels, and no cancel at all, we would love to see covers cancelled like yours land in our daily mail.
Linus