Happenings

The Buck Boshwit Tennessee Civil War Postal History Collection

October 22, 2009 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

The Shelby County Register’s Office has released a new online exhibit. The Boshwit Stamp Collection, provided by the Boshwit family, is a valuable collection of rare stamps and postmarks providing insight into the 1860’s.

In a time before modern communications, the mail was one of the chief means of staying in touch. One example of the collection’s focus on Tennessee postal history is an artist’s depiction of President Lincoln hanging upside down from a tree. Another example shows how the lack of paper forced the creative use of materials, such as wallpaper, to be used as envelopes to get a message through.

Robert A. Siegel with Auction Galleries of New York described the holdings as “One of the finest collections of Confederate States ever formed, specializing in Tennessee, Arkansas and Adversity Covers.” To quote Tom Leatherwood, our Shelby County Register of Deeds, “We are grateful to the Boshwit family for their donation. The historical and educational value of the Buck Boshwit Tennessee Civil War postal collection is priceless.”

October is National Stamp Collecting Month, an annual event that began in 1981 as a joint venture of the Council of Philatelic Organizations and the United Sates Postal Service.

This new online exhibit is just the latest in the long range commitment made by Shelby County Register Tom Leatherwood to provide open and free access to records and indexes online. You can visit the website at http://register.shelby.tn.us/buck_boshwit_collection/disclaimer.php.