Let's Send a Letter to France - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to Postal History Sunday, featured weekly on the Genuine Faux Farm blog and the GFF Postal History blog.  If you take this link, you can view every edition of Postal History Sunday, starting with this one (the most recent always shows up at the top).

Several months ago, we explored what it would take to mail a letter from the United States to Switzerland in the 1860s.  This time around, I thought it might be fun to look at mail from the United States to France.  So, this week is going to be steeped in the postal history part of the story, rather than the surrounding social history.

Either way, you are invited to join me.  I'll do my best to make it interesting and entertaining.  There is no exam at the end and you can feel free to ask questions or, perhaps, point out things I should correct.  Now, let's look at something I enjoy!  

France and the United States of America negotiated a postal convention that went into effect in April of 1857 and provided the guidelines for the exchange of mail through the end of 1869.  This treaty set the postage rate at 15 cents per 1/4 ounce (7.5 grams) and allowed for carriage of the mail via American, British, Canadian (after amendment to the agreement in 1861), French and German mail packets (steamships). 

Trans-Atlantic Routing Choices
The postage collected was actually split between the different postal services based on the parts of the service each country was responsible for covering.  The most expensive part of the service was the Atlantic Ocean crossing, so it mattered which country held the contract with the shipping company that carried the mail.

The following is a simplified description of the different trans-Atlantic routes and contracts that mail from the US to France took during this treaty period.

Paid for by the United States (aka American Packet)

• The Inman Line from New York to Queenstown, Ireland and Liverpool, England (green)
• The German owned steamship lines from New York (red) that would go on to Bremen and Hamburg after dropping off French mail in Southampton near London
• The Canadian steamship line (Allen Line) that left either by Quebec or Portland, Maine and went via Derry, Ireland and Liverpool (purple)
• The Havre Line that went direct from New York to Le Havre, France (blue)
  

The French paid the British (aka British Packet)

• The Cunard Line alternated from New York and Boston, stopping at Queenstown, Ireland and Liverpool (green)
• The Galway Line went from New York to the west coast of Ireland at Galway (green)
  

Paid for by the French (aka French Packet)

• The French line traveled between New York and Brest, France (blue)
  

Ships that carried French mails but did not visit a French port were off-loaded from their trans-Atlantic packets under the auspices of the British postal system and had to cross the English Channel.  Typically, these mails crossed to Calais, though other entry points (such as Havre) were possible.

Postal Rate Breakdown as They Related to Routes

From the perspective of the postal patron, the rate was 15 cents per 1/4 ounce.  The shipping line used did not change the cost for mailing the letter.  Once again, the route only mattered when it came to figuring out who got how much of the postage.  So, the US Post Office cared and so did the French Post.  And, since I am a postal historian, I guess I care too!  Though you could argue that my reasons might need more justification than the postal clerks of the time did.

Again, you could argue the point.  I'm just unlikely to listen.

Since I collect postal history with the 24 cent stamp, it is actually easier for me to study items that were double weight (or higher) letters. So, the next several items will have required 30 cents in postage for a letter weighing more than 1/4 ounce and no more than 1/2 ounce.

Table 1

Properly paid letters were marked with a credit amount in red.  This amount indicated how much of the postage was supposed to be sent to the French from the United States.

The credit amounts shown in Table 1 are for double weight mail that has been fully paid to the destination in France.  For example, if a letter was sent by a French packet (ship), the US would need to send 24 cents of the 30 cents collected to France.

Remember, with a prepaid letter, the US postal service has collected money for all postal services to be used to get the letter to its destination in France.  However, other postal systems were required to get the letter to its destination.  That means some of the money collected by the United States was necessary to cover services rendered by these postal systems (the British and French posts).  The credit amount is what is due from the United States to France to pay for France's (and England's) portion of the mail services used.  If England was due compensation for its services, it was up to the French to provide payment from the funds passed to them by the United States.

United States Packet direct to France

Double rate via Havre

The item shown above is an example of an American shipping line providing the trans-Atlantic carriage services directly to France.  The New York and Havre Steam Navigation Company (typically referred to as the "Havre Line" by postal historians) sailed between New York and, not surprisingly, Havre.

The 30 cents postage belonged, for the most part, to the United States because it paid the steam packet line for its services crossing the Atlantic (18 cents).  France was credited only 6 cents to cover its own mail services starting in Havre until the letter was delivered in Paris.  The remaining 6 cents belonged to the United States for its 'surface mail' from Philadelphia to New York, where it was placed on board the ship (the Mississippi) that would carry this letter across the Atlantic Ocean.

Other than the circular grid cancels that were used to obliterate the stamps so they could not be re-used, there are three postal markings on the front of this envelope that help us understand how this piece of mail traveled and how the postal systems accounted for the postage.

The red "Phila Am Pkt" circular marking shows the date (Friday, April 26) this envelope entered the mailbag to go across the Atlantic Ocean.  The red "6" inside of this circular marking represents the amount credited to France for a double weight piece of mail being carried by a packet under contract to the United States for direct service to France.

The red octagonal marking reads "Etats Unis Serv Am Havre" and is dated on May 10, 1867, which represents the date this item was removed from the mailbag and placed into the French mailstream.  The French clerk recognized this item as paid because the US exchange office had used red ink for their marking (in Philadelphia).  The square marking with the letters "PD" further confirms that the French were treating this piece of mail as fully paid.  This "PD" marking was an indication to postal personnel that they did not have to ask the recipient to pay for any of the services rendered.

If this had not been properly prepaid, the marking would have been in black ink and the amount in the circle would have shown "24" cents to represent the uncompensated portion of mail service provided by the United States.  There would have been no "PD" marking and the recipient would have been asked to pay for all of the services rendered at the time of delivery.

The one thing that is not obviously referenced by these markings would be the actual sailing that carried this piece of mail across the Atlantic.  This is where Dick Winter and Walter Hubbard's (North Atlantic Mail Sailings: 1840-1875) excellent work compiling sailing tables by referencing sailing documentation in contemporary periodicals comes in handy. The Mississippi of the Havre Line left New York on the 27th and arrived in Havre on May 10.

French Packet Direct to France

Double rate via Brest

Compagnie Generale Transatlantique (CGT) was a French packet line that maintained a route between New York and Brest and it held a contract with France to carry mail beginning in mid-1864.  The route from Brest to New York was designated by CGT as Ligne H, so the French markings include that label.  Since the French were responsible for paying the steamship line, the 18 cents for the trans-Atlantic carriage needed to passed to the French postal service.  Instead of 6 cents credited, it was now 24 cents credited to France.

Again, if this is confusing to you, think about where the money is initially.  The sender of this letter purchased 30 cents in US postage stamps, giving that money to the US postal system.  The expenses incurred for the delivery of each letter could be split into pieces, not all of which were part of the US post.  That which was the responsibility of another post needed to be paid for, but the money that was collected in the form of postage needed to be passed to the postal system that incurred the expenses.  Hence the red numerical markings indicating a credit (24 cents in this case) to the French system.

Not all mail conventions worried about breaking down postage by letter because, as mail volumes increased it was becoming apparent that accounting by piece of mail was too labor intensive.  Some conventions determined breakdowns by weight of the aggregate, acknowledging that most letters averaged a certain weight.  It was also becoming apparent to some administrations that mail volumes between countries was balancing out, making some of this accounting a moot point.  This convention between France and the United States, however, outlined the breakdown per piece of letter mail (Article VII).

British Packet via Britain

 

Double rate via Britain and Havre

 

Things get a bit more complicated when we add a third postal system into the mix.  British steamers owned by the Cunard Line (British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company) were under contract with the British postal services, so money had to get to Britain in order to pay for the trans-Atlantic service.  Typically, the mail was off-loaded at Queenstown (Cobh, Ireland) and taken by rail to eastern Ireland where it crossed to England via the Holyhead and Kingston Packets OR the mail was taken all the way to Liverpool.  The French mail was then taken by rail to London where it was forwarded across the channel from Dover or Southampton.  This transit service also incurred costs that went to the British.

Since there was a great deal of mail traffic between France and Britain, the portion of the postage due to Britain was actually passed on to France by the United States.  France then used their own arrangements with Britain to settle up for the transit costs via Britain.  These costs were approximately 12 cents (for a double weight letter) for the trans-Atlantic service and 4 cents for the transit through England and across the Channel.  

 

The United States still kept 6 cents for it's internal mail transit, which remains consistent throughout each of the options explored here.  On the other hand, it is interesting to note that the breakdown of postage seems inconsistent for the French surface mail.

 

The letter shown above has a small detail that I find interesting.  Most mail that transited England on its way to France entered France at Calais.  It is uncommon to find an item that traveled via Britain and entered France at another point.  In this case, Havre was the entry point, which made sense because that was the letter's destination.  But, to do that, the mail was sent via a private ship rather than one contracted specifically to carry the mail.  

American Packet via Britain

Double rate via Britain and Calais

 

United States, Canadian and German steamers were all operating under contract with the US government to carry mail, which means any mail to France carried by these steamers would be given the same rate breakdown.  The Liverpool, New York & Philadelphia Steam Ship Company (Inman Line) carried the envelope shown above.  The credit amount to France is only 12 cents, allowing the United States 18 cents to pay the 12 cents to the steamship company and six cents for internal surface mail.  The French paid the British 4 cents for the transit via their mail system and they kept the remaining eight cents for their own expenses.

The Cunard Line as American Packet beginning 1868

Cunard Line trans-Atlantic crossing in 1868

This next letter serves as is a reminder to me that a seemingly unrelated act can effect change where we don't necessarily expect it.  The United States and Britain enacted a new postal convention on January 1, 1868, which reduced the postage rates between the two.  Further, the new convention no longer differentiated between British and American contract packets.  Instead, the postal service at the point of departure was responsible for the cost of the trans-Atlantic packet.  In other words, every ship carrying mail and leaving the American ports was an expense for the United States postal system.  The net result for mail to France?  Every packet that went via Britain was now an American packet, so the credit became 12 cents for Cunard Line ships as the United States now paid them for their services.

Triple Rate Letter

A letter weighing more than a 1/2 ounce and no more than 3/4 ounce would require 45 cents in postage.  Here is an example of a triple rate that was a British Packet via Britain.  The credit marking is for 36 cents to France.  Look for the red pencil marking that reads "36/3" (36 cents credit to France at a 3 times letter rate).

A triple rate letter to France

If you take a moment to look at this item, it illustrates a couple of interesting things that could help with reading pieces of postal history from the period.

Routing and Shipping Directives
The top left of the letter has hand written text (docketing) that reads "per Cunard Steamer of Wed Dec 5th from Boston."  It is not uncommon to find these sorts of directions on mail during the 1860's.  These directives could have been written by the sender, by the postmaster at the originating post office, by a forwarding agent acting on behalf of the sender or perhaps by the foreign mail clerk at the exchange office.  The purpose of this sort of docket could either be to indicate the preferred route, especially if it differed from the postal services default routing, or it could have the intent of trying to show the recipient when something was sent and how it was intended to arrive.

Names and Addresses Removed
If you look at this item closely, you might notice that the name of the recipient has been crossed out, making it difficult to decipher the actual name.  In many instances, pieces of postal history were acquired from correspondents who wished to have contents separated from the covering (an envelope or folded piece of paper).  Some went further, attempting to remove any personal information, such as addresses or names in an attempt to maintain privacy.  

Full Rate Markings in Addition to Credit Markings
This cover also shows a red "45" at the bottom left.  Up to this point, all of the other items only show numbers for the amount to be passed on to France to cover services not rendered by the United States postal system.  In the case of this item, the "45" represents the postage required to send the item (45 cents).  I am guessing that the marking was applied in Newport, Rhode Island, the post office which postmarked the stamps on December 4.

So, why bother with a "45" marking when there are 45 cents for all to see on the cover?  It really seems like extra work, doesn't it?  But, if you consider possible scenarios it doesn't seem so odd.  

A person walks into the post office with a letter for France.  The clerk weights it and informs the sender that it will require 45 cents.  The sender pays the clerk and the clerk marks the letter with a "45" and puts it into a pile to be processed later so the clerk can continue to work with other customers.  

At a later point in the day, the clerk adds the appropriate postage and postmarks them.  This scenario is not so hard to believe since I have witnessed the same procedure in my own experience mailing larger items that require more than a typical amount of postage.  The clerk weighs the item out and writes the postage amount on the package.  I pay and the clerk completes the process of putting stamps or a meter on the item at some later point in time.  Does that mean this is what happened here?  Not necessarily.  But, it seems a likely explanation for something that looks a bit redundant on this cover.

Short Paid Mail

Insufficiently paid mail treaty as unpaid mail

So, you think treaty mail is confusing now - just think what it must have seemed like to people when there were different postal rates to each country (and often more than one rate to the same country). 

We can only speculate why the person who mailed the letter shown above used a single 24 cent stamp.  But, since it appears to be a business correspondence it is possible they just confused this with a letter to England.  After all, the rate to England was 24 cents per half ounce.  But, this letter was to France and it clearly weighed more than 7.5 grams and apparently was less than 15 grams, so the postage required was 30 cents, meaning it was short paid by 6 cents.

A sensible person might feel as if it would only be fair to collect the French equivalent of 6 cents and be done with it.  But, that is NOT how it worked at the time with the postal convention in place.  Instead, short paid mail was treated as wholly unpaid, which means the recipient had to pay the entire rate for the privilege of receiving the letter.  The "16" on the cover represents 16 decimes (1 franc, 60 centimes), which was due on delivery.  Now, the French have collected the entire postage, but they need to send some money BACK to the United States to cover the US surface mail expenses.  Hence, the 6 in the black New York marking as a debit to France requesting payment.

So, what happens to the 24 cents in postage collected by the United States?  In this case, the postal service gets to keep it without any extra services rendered.  Does that seem unfair to you?  Well, consider these two things:

1. Mail during this period did not have to be prepaid in order for it to be taken to its destination.
2. A recipient could refuse delivery.

This begs the question - how much mail did postal services carry for free because it was sent unpaid and the recipient refused delivery?  Still, if this was a legitimate mistake, it does seem a steep price to pay.  The good news is that conventions and postal systems were rapidly changing to charge only the deficient amount as postage due so that the postage applied would still pay for at least some of the services rendered. 

Five or Six Times Rate

I'll just let you to enjoy this one by simply showing the exhibit page.  I might type a bit more after the illustration.

Here's a pretty (and larger) envelope with 90 cents of postage, which would seem to indicate that this was 6 times the 15-cent rate (more that 1 1/4 ounces and no more than 1 1/2 ounces). This letter was carried on a steamship that went direct to Havre on a US contract ship.  So, the credit amount, for a six-times rate would be 36 cents.  But, we muddy the waters this time with then pen marking that looks a bit like a "30" and not a "36."

It is not hard to think of any number of scenarios that explain the inconsistency - among them the real possibility that this WAS supposed to be a "36."  Rather than engage in speculative postal history, I will be content with not knowing for certain what rate this envelope was supposed to be originally.  But, I think I have the right of it that France probably treated it as a five times rate and received a credit of 30 cents.  I also believe I have the right of it that the sender paid for a six times rate with postage stamps.

You can make up your own story as to how that happened!

Forwarded Mail

An item sent to France and forwarded on to London, England

It isn't easy to see, but the New York exchange marking at the center right of the letter above shows a "12" and this cover provides an extra puzzle because the date in the New York marking is struck poorly.  We are left with the most useful clue coming from the red French marking that gives a Dec 8, 1861 date and reads, in part, "Serv Am."  

This is enough to tell me that this piece of mail had to travel across the Atlantic on an American contract vessel.  The two available options from sailing tables are the Inman's Edinburgh leaving New York on November 23 and a sailing of the Allen Line from Quebec on the same date.  Since both ships arrived at Liverpool on the 7th of December, we can assume the Inman sailing simply because the Allan Line sailing for New York mail would be highly unlikely.

This appears to be a letter to A.G. Goodall (Albert Gallatin Goodall: 1826-1887), an engraver by trade, who was to become president of the American Banknote Company (ABC) in 1874, remaining in that office until his death.  As early as 1858, Goodall represented the ABC to obtain contracts with foreign entities, so travel was not unfamiliar to him.  Goodall was also a prominent freemason who often represented the United States branches as liaison for related fraternal organizations worldwide.

Goodall arranged for mail to be sent to the U.S. Legation in Paris during his travels and clearly, the U.S. Legation in London was also aware of his itinerary.  It was not uncommon for a person traveling to arrange with an agent to receive mail.  That agent could either hold mail for the client or forward that mail to another location.  

In this case, the Legation in Paris sent the item on without paying the postage from France to England.  The "More to Pay" marking was applied in London, alerting the recipient and the postal clerk that postage was due (4d per quarter ounce).  It is presumed that the item was rated as a double rate letter by the British and 8d were collected.  The squiggle at top right *might* be a due marking, though I cannot quite bring myself to conclude that this mark aligns with a due amount.  The "P.D." marking was applied in France to indicate that postage from the United States to France had been prepaid, but it did not apply to the forwarding of the mail.

A quick search for A.G. Goodall in 1861 shows a person by that name returning to New York on the Havre Line's Arago on December 26 of 1861 (New York Times, Dec 27, 1861).  So, it seems as if the letter may well have caught him in London.

Where did you learn this stuff?

 A common question that I am asked is, "how did you learn all of these things?"  Well, part of the answer is my good fortune to follow in the footsteps of others who have done research that makes my own efforts easier.  I thought it might be good to share some of that here.  I also access some of the original postal agreements and conventions of that time which helps to inform me about what I am looking at.

• The text of the 1857 postal convention can be found along with amendments at this location on the blog.
• Hubbard, W. and Winter, R.F., North Atlantic Mail Sailings: 1840-1875, USPCS, 1988.
• Hargest,G.E., History of Letter Post Communication Between the United States and Europe: 1845-1875, 2^nd ed, Quarterman, 1971.
• Winter,D, Understanding Trans-Atlantic Mail vols 1 & 2, APS, 2006.
• Starnes,C.J, United States Letter Rates to Foreign Destinations: 1847 to GPU-UPU, revised ed., Hartmann, 1989.
• Postal Laws and Regulations of the United States of America: 1866, Wierenga reprint, 1981.
• List of Post Offices and Postal Laws and Regulations of the United States of America: 1857, Wierenga reprint, 1980.

Thank you for joining me this week.  This entry gives you all a taste of some of the depth and detail that a postal historian may find themselves digging into so they can better recognize and understand what they are seeing when they look at a postal artifact.  And, if you're thinking "geez, 'artifact' is a hoity-toity word," all you need to know is that I was looking for an opportunity to put that word in a blog just because I wanted to!

Have a fine remainder of your day and a fine week to come.