7410

Bicycle Mail Golden Jubilee Comm. Cover, Autographed 1944 [187206]

Currency:USD Category:Stamps / United States - Covers Start Price:20.00 USD Estimated At:50.00 - 80.00 USD
Bicycle Mail Golden Jubilee Comm. Cover, Autographed  1944 [187206]
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U.S. souvenir cover commemorating the Golden Jubilee (1894-1944) of the advent of Bicycle Mail, postmarked 1944. Autographed by Arthur Banta, beneath his photo on front cachet. Banta was the initiator of the Bicycle Mail Route, a mail service between Fresno and San Francisco consisting of 8 bicycle relays to convey the mail over 210 miles. The service ran from July 7 through July 16, 1894, to transport the mail during the Pullman strike, which caused a postal failure. The Pullman strike started May 11, 1894 and spread to the American Railway Union which declared a boycott of all Pullman cars on June 26. The strike was violent and interrupted much railroad activity, especially the mail West of Chicago. The strike ended July 15, 1894, and train service was quickly restored. Banta owned the Victor Cyclery store in Fresno and was active with the American Wheelman Co. in San Francisco. He was not a stamp collector but quickly became aware that there was considerable interest in the stamps and covers for the collector market. Cover includes Bicycle Mail commemorative seal, 1944 SF postmark, transcontinental railroad adhesive stamp, and rectangular handstamp, "Edwin R. Payne/29c/Salem Oregon". Payne was a noted postal historian and author of philatelic works. Banta's Oakland address hand stamped on verso. [ 1944