P701

Alaska & Hawaii Statehood

25th Anniversary

Collins Cover Announcement

25th Statehood Anniversary

This outstanding set was a real bear (polar type?) to produce, but the end results are First Day Cover gems (Diamondhead type?) and they truly justify the thousands of air miles and the many sleepless hours of night flying.

I would like to caution all of my collectors but especially the newer ones that this set may be a fairly fast sell out--accordingly, please do not sit on the order forms too long if you wish to be assured of obtaining these FDCs at this issue price before they reach a sold out status. As with all my covers, they may be available for a period of time or they may go quickly as did J601/J602. I know that this is repetitive and over the years I repeat this advise often, but invariably on quick sell-outs a few collectors miss them by not ordering on a timely basis and then become upset at their inaction. This set has the visual beauty and the right cancels to appeal to many-enough said.

Why?

Before the first of the year I determined that I would make the 25th Statehood Anniversary issues of Alaska and Hawaii one of my major 1984 efforts. Both states are blessed with contrasting natural beauty of great magnitude and each holds the would-be first-time visitor by an invisible grasp of curiosity and wonder. Being such interesting places, collectable items originating in or pertaining to these states have much appeal to many individuals. It was my desire that COLLINS covers Produced for this issue would be at or near the top of all those created. That is why.

How?

Since March of 1978 when the first COLLINS was produced, I have continually been in quest of related unofficials for my FDCs. From experience, I knew that planning and scheduling were the twin keys to ultimate success. If I hoped to mull off the ambitious goal of obtaining First Day official and related unofficial cancels on each cover, no detail could be overlooked. At risk would be a great expense in terms of dollars and effort and time. Unforeseen snares, bad luck traps and happen-chance travel misfortunes always lurk behind the bushes along the unofficial path, ,if partial or complete failure was to he my fate , I was determined that it would not be for lack of fore-sight planning or preparedness. That is how.

Where?

The First Day cities were to be Fairbanks and Honolulu respectively. Those two cities were half the answer. But what would the tie-in for the unofficials be? Where else should the covers be canceled?

Working with the maps, I decided that the voyages and exploits of Captain Cook would be my common thread. For the Alaska cover, my unofficial city would be Anchorage which lies on the coastal shore of Cook Bay For Hawaii the unofficial would be the seaside village of Captain Cook which is located on the Big Island. Each would require a mid-day flight from the official cities and arrangements began to take shape, That is where.

When?

January 3 1984 in Alaska - First Day of Issue. March 12 1984 in Hawaii - Pirst Day of Issue. That was when.

What?

At last we come to the question that collectors want answered most of all, What Was the end r'esult? I shall try to be as objective as possible, but I am so thrilled with these latest COLLINS FDCs that I hope you will forgive me if I tend to stray a bit.

First let us consider the Alaska cover. The very ambitious and full  cachet pictures many of the images that the 49th state brings to mind--an Eskimo driver mushing his seven-dog sled team; a walrus on an ice-floe; a stern wheeler plying the coastal waterways; a colorful salmon; a native totem pole; a lumbering Kodiak bear; and a map of the state, Of course, all of the foregoing are individually hand painted in careful detail and realism.

In bold and large type, the cachet proclaims--Alaska Statehood 1959-1984. This is a large over-all cachet that takes up the whole envelope and is something to see. As for the hand cancels, at Fairbanks I acquired the First Day bullseye on a single in the upper right hand corner. Then it was on to Anchorage where an additional single in the upper left hand corner was unofficially hand canceled I am sure that these were among the relatively few FDCs to receive unofficials and may be the only ones to have both official and related unofficial cancels Geographic and economic considerations make Alaskan unofficials a scarce commodity so these cancels should be appreciated and treasured a little more than usual.

This is an FDC that reflects the mood of our northern frontier state and I know that you will enjoy it very much.

Second, let us consider the Hawaii cover. This complementary cachet is designed along the same lines as its Alaskan counterpart. Again, the cachet is of the over-all variety and shows Island subjects which include an outrigger canoe with six man crew; a vivid tropical fish; a delicate orchid, a large conch shell; a brightly plumed tropical bird: an active volcano; an equally active hula dancer with flowered lei and grass skirt; and a map of the Aloha State including all of the various Islands As you can well imagine, the hand painting on this cover will brighten up any collection. At Honolulu, a hand First Day bullseye ties a single stamp in the lower right hand corner. Then, from the Island of Oahu I flew with the covers to the Big Island of Hawaii. After a short drive south I arrived at the coastal village of Captain Cook where an unofficial hand cancel with killer bars was obtained on a single in the lower left-hand corner. I really consider this a great related unofficial for a Hawaiian theme cover. Again in bold and large print, this cachet reads Hawaii Statehood 1959-1984 This FDC really portrays the excitement and beauty of our Pacific paradise.

If you have been reading carefully you have noted that the stamps on the Alaskan covers were affixed in the upper corners and that the stamps on the Hawaii covers were put in the lower corners. This was Purposely done to provide variety and also it lends itself to a very nice visual effect if both covers are displayed or exhibited on one page.

These two duo FDCs were my original goal and they accomplished exactly what I wanted to achieve. In fact, looking at them they exceed my original expectations, and I am proud to offer them for your collection. Considering the actual First Day hand cancels, the extensive detailed cachet designs and the individual hand painting applied to each of these PDCs, it is hard to imagine that any other cachetmaker has topped this effort and resultant collectables, But ... being the cover person that I am I have yet one final surprise for you. During the planning stage of this project it suddenly dawned on me that I would be in both unofficial cities on the respective First Day of Issues that the unofficials shared the Captain Cook theme, that the stamps shared the 25th Statehood Anniversary theme... and, most important .,. that the opportunity existed to create a dual unofficial FDC with both stamps and that the chances of anyone else producing such a cover for these issues were probably a million to one.

The hand painted cachet on this third cover shows a sweeping and majestic scene from the north country--snow-capped mountains and a wide panoramic expanse of nature's ice-box. In addition, it shows a green and lush tropical Hawaiian coastline with palms and brightly colored flowers, These two extremes side by side, certainly illustrate the contrasting landscapes of these two lovely and picturesque states. The two previous covers show great detail in their cachets whereas this FDC captures the over-all awesome beauty. Above their respective landscapes, an Alaskan single is unofficially hand canceled on Jan 3rd at Anchorage and a Hawaii single is unofficially hand canceled on March 12th at Captain Cook. I'm virtually certain that this COLLINS FDC is the only one to exist with unofficials for both of these stamps on one cover. A wonderful dual FDC with dual unofficials and a dual cachet to celebrate the dual 25th Anniversaries. When the three covers are viewed together, they are indeed a showpiece, As for the exciting trips, I hope to make them the subject of an article for First Days, As you can imagine, they were both very memorable and eventful T611-Fneys. I feel that when the story is told, many collectors will be attracted to this set and will want to add it to their collections, All the more reason for you to decide if you want them and if so to acquire them without too much delay , As always, you can order them, look at them, and decide if you want to keep them. Believe me, any First Day collector getting them in his hands will not let go easily, so do seriously consider ordering- When you receive them, you'll be glad you did.

Due to the very expensive travel cost of both trips and due to the very length inting time per cover, I'm increasing my usual $5.50 by 50%. This is a necessity, but it still keeps the set of

three under $25, and I suspect that in the future everyone who buys at that price will look back and be very glad they did. Very glad.

Alaska Statehood cover Fairbanks, Alaska official/ Anchorage, Alaska unofficial. Item #0701 - Price $8 25

Alaska/Hawaii cover - Anchorage, Alaska unofficial/ Captain Cook, Hawaii unofficial. Item 4P701 - Price $8.25

Hawaii Statehood cover - Honolulu official/Captain Cook , Hawaii unofficial. Item 4A801 - Price $8.25

IMPORTANT NOTE : You will be pleased to know that details will be sent to you very soon about the catch-up for the remaining 1983 covers not yet offered.