Auction # 60 - The Westpex Sale

Georgetown, Cal. (El Dorado). Address to D.C. Kenney of the Pilot Creek Water and Mining Co. on small leather pouch, franked with 1867, 3¢ red, F. grill, three singles (one mostly chipped off) canceled by target handstamps, F.-V.F., an unusual parcel that likely contained gold.
Scott No. 94; Estimate $1,000 - 1,500.

Greenwood, Cal. (El Dorado). Blue rimless arched postmark with manuscript date (ELD-1700) on cover to Haynesville, Me., matching "Paid 6" rate handstamp, with original 1854 enclosure mentioning acquaintance dying from Panama Fever, Very Fine, ex Haas.
Estimate; $100 - 150.

La Porte, Cal., Jul 13, 1860 (Sierra). Bold cds (SIE-940) tying 1859, 10¢ green, type V on cover to Waterville, N.Y., with "Overland, Via Los Angeles" Four-Horse Stagecoach imprint at upper left; some light cover staining and stamp flaws, Fine, a scarce overland mail cover usage from La Porte.
Scott No. 35; Estimate $250 - 350.

Mammoth, Cal., Dec 30 (Mono). Purple cds and target duplex (MON-0760) tying 3¢ Banknote on cover to Pottersville, N.H.; stamp flaw with gum reside around stamp, F.-V.F., one of only three known town handstamps from this early gold town of the eastern Sierra.
Estimate; $750 - 1,000.

Postal marks from this town's first period are rare and are only recorded between late 1879 and the middle of 1881. This...

Mokulumne Hill, Cal., Apr 17 (Calaveras). Cds (CAL-1640) on 1855, 10¢ Nesbitt entire to Peekskill, N.Y., canceled by fancy circle of wedges in oval cancel, Very Fine, a rare fancy cancellation, illustrated in Coburn's Letters of Gold (page 319), ex Haas.
Estimate; $150 - 200.

Nevada City, Cal., 3 Paid, Nov 23 (Nevada). Integral rate cds (NEV-1190) with "Paid 3" handstamp below on 1853 cover to Freesport, Ill., with red "Steamer Winfield Scott" handstamp at top; cover wear and repair internal hole in address panel, Very Fine appearance, ex Lichtenstein, Clifford.
Estimate; $1,500 - 2,000.

ONE OF THE SEVEN KNOWN COVERS RECOVERED FROM THE WRECK OF THE "STEAMER WINFIELD SCOTT...

Orleans, Cal., Sept 30, 1875 (Klamath). Manuscript postmark (KLA-70) on target canceled 1870, 3¢ green entire to Yreka, Very Fine.
Estimate; $100 - 150.

Poverty Bar, Cal., May 4 (Calaveras). Balloon cds on cover to New Kingston, New York franked with 5¢ red brown type I (28), two singles, top stamp with pre-use tear, tied by additional strikes of the cds, endorsed "via Panama"; cover tear at left, bottom backflap missing, F.-V.F., a very rare use of the red brown 5¢ in California, ex-Myerson.
Estimate; $500 - 750.

Illustrated in Coburn's Letters of Gold on...

Round Valley, Cal., 12/2, 1881 (Inyo). Manuscript postmark (INY-1638) on 1874, 3¢ green entire to Sonora, Cal.; small corner nick, Very Fine, only three manuscript examples of this discontinued Post Office have ever been recorded, all were found as a group and all are recorded on an 1874 3¢ green entire, the Post Office was located north of Bishop in a valley at the base of Round Mountain.
Estimate; $500 - 750.

Sacramento, Cal., Apr 24 (Sacramento). Oval date stamp (SAC-2480, R7) on 1850 folded letter to Augusta, Iowa, with red crayon 40 rate, letter with some interesting content…gold is not as plenty as it was represented to be by the papers before we left home…John, myself and Raine are building a sawmill we think we can do better at sawing than at mining; some edge wear and light soiling, still Very Fine.
Estimate; $300 -...

Sacramento Cal. '40' 8 June (Sacramento). Cds on blue folded letter datelined "Bear River, California, May 26, 1850", long 4½ page letter with interesting miner content…Wee are the only ones here that has good clames so for once wee have been fortunate. We are averaging from 10 to 50 dollars each per day & I think will for six weeks now mak an average of 40$ dollars and it has all the appearance to hold out all summer say 3...

Saint Louis, Cal. (Sierra). Two covers from correspondence to Norfolk, England; 1857 usage with blue first type cds (SIE-1400) and 1859 with balloon type cds (Williams unlisted), both with magenta "Paid 29" rates and red Liverpool transit cds's; backflap flaws, otherwise Very Fine.
Estimate; $300 - 400.