Rare Civil War envelope from Lenoir set for N.Y. auction

Jun. 7—NEW YORK, N.Y. — A rare Civil War envelope sent from Lenoir to Yorktown, Virginia is up for public auction at H.R. Harmer Fine Stamp Auctions in New York City.

On June 21, 2023, H.R. Harmer Fine Stamp Auctions will be offering at public auction the ninth of 10 installments of the "Erivan" Collection of United and Confederate States Postal History. This collection represents one of the most comprehensive and important holdings of American postage stamps ever assembled, and its appearance at auction marks a watershed moment for the hobby of philately (the collection and study of postage stamps). Highlights from the past few years include an envelope carried by Pony Express to Abraham Lincoln, which sold for $330,000, and the famous "Blue Boy" stamp of Alexandria, Virginia, which realized an impressive $1.18 million.

This upcoming sale includes an 1861 envelope from Lenoir, North Carolina to Yorktown, Virginia that was sent at the beginning of the Civil War.

According to Charles Epting, CEO of H.R. Harmer Fine Stamp Auctions, the envelope is addressed to "Dr. James M. Abernethy, Private, Co K. 1st. Regt. N. Carolina Volunteers, Care of Genl. D.H. Hill, Yorktown, Virginia, C.S.A."

"While there's little information about Dr. Abernethy that I've been able to find, Daniel Harvey [D.H.] Hill was the brother-in-law of Stonewall Jackson and a prominent Confederate States general," Epting said. "The doctor was stationed with the company in October 1861, about six months or so into the war, in Yorktown, Virginia."

Unfortunately, the letter that the envelope carried has been lost to time. Epting hypothesized the letter is most likely stowed away in a family chest somewhere.

"You always wonder why these things survive," he said.

When the Civil War broke out, the newly-formed Confederate States of America was left trying to figure out how to set up their own postal service. The Confederate government was not initially focused on producing postage stamps, as resources were being directed toward more pressing matters. Consequently, some Southern postmasters began creating their own stamps and stamped envelopes in lieu of federally issued stamps.

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"This Lenoir provisional represents a very rare instance of a postmaster's ingenuity in a time of need," said Epting. "It also gives you an appreciation of how the Civil War affected every corner of people's lives, including how they communicated with each other."

This envelope was last seen at auction in 1967, and is expected to bring in far more than it's $5,000 starting price, according to experts in the industry.

The value of this item cannot be measured in merely monetary terms — it is a key piece of Americana and North Carolina history. Erivan Haub (1932-2018), a German businessman and philanthropist with a love for American history, spent decades curating a collection of United States stamps and postal history that documents the rise of America in the 19th century and beyond. Haub preserved some of the most precious artifacts from America's past, and this coming June, this extraordinary Lenoir envelope will once again have a chance to make history on the auction block.

Harmer very quickly became synonymous with high-quality philatelic auctions in its namesake's native Great Britain. By 1940, it was time for the company to branch out, and a satellite office was opened across the Atlantic in New York City.

H.R. Harmer first rose to prominence in the U.S. when the firm was selected to sell the collection of the late President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. These auctions were front-page news even in the non-philatelic press, as never before had the stamp collection of such a beloved public figure been made available to collectors.

Over the coming decades, H.R. Harmer would go on to sell two of the most comprehensive and valuable collections ever to cross the auction block — those of Alfred H. Caspary and Alred F. Lichtenstein, both of which would set new high-water marks in the industry. And, since 2019, H.R. Harmer has been selling the collection of German businessman Erivan Haub — a series of auctions which has once again placed H.R. Harmer at the forefront of the philatelic world.

Today, led by a young and enthusiastic team, H.R. Harmer is still dedicated to providing collectors with the same professional service and philatelic expertise that the company was founded upon all those decades ago.

For more information, visit www.hrharmer.com.