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First Day Covers

The first day cover (also known as a first day of issue) is a means on commemorating a postage stamp. Began informally over a Century ago, it has evolved into an industry which even the National Postal Services participate in. There are as many as four elements to the first day of issue commemorative:

A.)  Stamp cancellation on first day of issue – Originally this was a standard cancellation, but they have evolved into pictorial cancellations, often specially made for the occasion. The key element of the cancellation is that it postmarks the stamp on the first day of issue. The postmark is often from a city significant to the stamp being issued such as Celeron, NY being used for a Lucille Ball stamp as this is the City she was born in.

B.)  Event covers, or commemorative covers have taken off as an industry. The cover is specially designed by a company to reflect the stamp being honored. The left side of the envelope will typically have an illustration, referred to in the industry as a cachet which reflects the theme of the stamp. Postal Service officials frequently schedule a ceremony for the issue of a first day cover and cancel a large number of covers at that event. Major companies like Artcraft, Artmaster, and Fleetwood are primarily focused on making these commemorative covers, having them appropriately postmarked, and then selling them to the public.

C.) Back of envelope history and education. Fleetwood in particular uses the entire back of the envelope to dedicate a portion of the history, trivia and background on the stamp being commemorated.

D.) Addressee. First day covers were often mailed to an individual until they began to be mass produced. The Postal Commemorative Society created books of sequential covers which would be addressed to the subscriber. These had an entire standard sheet of information to which the envelope fit above or below the text in a large album.