Scotts #145 US stamps

#145 - 1870 without grill 1¢

See below for details

Basic Info

1¢ - Dark Ultramarine

Type of Paper: Hard white wove paper, thin to medium thick
Subject: Benjamin Franklin
Number issued: 140,000,000
Perforations: 12
Scott #: 145
Printer: National Bank Note Company
Date of Issue: April 12, 1870
Earliest Documented Use: May 7, 1870

Value

Used
$1 - $2.50
No postmark with gum (MH)
$110 - $150
Full perfect gum, no postmark
no trace of stamp hinge mark (MNH)
$200 - $300

Postal rates at the time

Up to 3000 miles, per ½ oz.: 3 cents
Over 3000 miles, per ½ oz.: 10 cents
Drop letters: 2 cents
Mainly used for 3rd class domestic mail and drop mail.

Plate #'s

#145 was issued with the following plate #'s

Imprint and plate number
16, 17, 50-53

The design inspiration

The source for the design was this bust by Jean-Antoine Houdon

Precancels

The only known pre-cancel, the Glen Allen Star precancel

#145 Characteristics

The shades

Above is a ROUGH color guide. I see rough because fading and sunlight can cause a change in color over time. However generally these are the colors too look for when identifying the stamp.

The paper

#145 is printed on hard white wove paper, thin to medium thick.

Hard paper was used by the National Bank Note Company and the Continental Bank Note Company. Soft paper was used by the American Bank Note Company.

The hard paper of the Bank Note issues is fairly white, perhaps it might better be called grayish white or sometimes a somewhat bluish white, while the soft paper seems slightly yellowish when compared with the hard paper.

Soft paper has a looser weave and more porous paper than hard paper, so it feels softer, displays a mesh or weave when viewed by holding the stamp between your eyes and light so that you are looking “through” the stamp.

Some people can also ID hard paper be “flicking” the edges and thereby “feeling” the stiffness of the paper versus the feel of soft paper if flicked in the same way. There's more of a snap to the hard paper.

On high magnification the perforation tips on soft paper will have more strands of paper sticking out than hard paper.

Soft paper is fairly dead looking under a long wave UV light ( (briefly and from a reasonable distance in a darkened room) while hard paper reflects more light. If reference copies of stamp designs known only on hard paper or soft paper are viewed under UV light, the difference in paper brightness should be apparent.

For a reference stamp obtain the inexpensive 1861 3¢ (#65), it is only available in hard paper.

A simple test is to hold a stamp to a lamp, you will see the hard paper is more translucent.

The Secret Mark

Look for a smile in the dot as shown above. This was a 'secret mark' that identifies #156 if it is a hard paper stamp and #182 if it is a soft paper stamp.

Earliest known use

The earliest known use is May 7, 1870

The steamer shown above is "Deutschland" which sailed from NY to Bremen and carried the above cover. The steamer is flying the flag of the North German Lloyd Company,