COVERS / ENVELOPES
(1933)

This page was last updated
06-Mar-2023 05:43

INTRODUCTION:
This section is devoted to general covers, package labels, envelopes and miscellaneous postal items used during the Third Reich period.

KRUMHERMSDORF to PIRNA
(18th Apr 1933)

This cover was sent from KRUMHERMSDORF to The German Federation of Building Trades in PIRNA on 18th Apr 1933. The stamp, a Michel 480, is one of the three 1933 "Opening of the New Reichstag" commemorative issue stamps.

TRIER to SAARBURG
(3rd May 1933)

Below is another cover with a Michel 480 stamp that was sent from Trier travel agency Warscheid & Ad. Lenz G.m.b.H, to the Mayor’s Office in Saarburg on 3rd May 1933.

WAIBLINGEN to STETTEN
(13th May 1933)

The next cover appears to be from a money transfer service in Waiblingen and was sent on 13th May 1933 to a pharmacist in Stettin.

SONNEBERG to BROKLYN, USA
(14th May 1933)

This cover is an American produced envelope commemorating the first voyage of the steamer The SS Washington. The cover was sent to Germany (unused) then posted from SONNEBERG Germany, back to an address in Brooklyn, New York, USA on 14th May 1933. There is a notation at the top which states "T. Ausfahrt Dampfer Washington" indicating that the letter was sent to the US on the SS Washington.

The 'George Washington' was a 25,570 GRT passenger ship operated by the North German Lloyd company. Launched on 1st Nov 1908 from the Vulcan shipyard in Stettin she was a Bremen Class mail steamer which saw service until she was scrapped in 1951.

The ship operated from BREMERHAVEN to NEW YORK and was interned in New York harbour at the outbreak of the First World War, serving with the US Navy as a troop ship from 1917 until the end of the war. She sailed with United States Lines between the wars and was again returned to the US Navy in 1942 where she once again served as a troop ship. She was mothballed in 1945 and scrapped in 1951 after a fire on board.

AHRWEILER to REMAGEN
(12th Jul 1933)

The official cover below was sent from the Tax office in Ahrweiler to an address in Remagen on 12th Jul 1933. There is no self-adhesive stamp used to cover postage, but the cover is marked "Frei durch Ablösung “Reich”" indicating that no stamp was required. The post office was under contract to provide "free postage" to government departments and would record the postage fee that was due on each letter and then bill the government on a monthly basis for the total amount.

BUND NATURESCHUTZ
(13th Jul 1933)

KOBLENZ to LEVERKUSEN
(10th Aug 1933)

This cover features a pair of 1933 issue Michel 484 Hindenburg Medallion stamps. The cover was sent from KOBLENZ to an address in LEVERKUSEN on 10th Aug 1933.

AIR MAIL to PERNAMBUCO, BRAZIL
(21st Aug 1933)

The following Air Mail cover was sent from Germany to PERNAMBUCHO, Brazil on board the airship LZ-127 The "Graf Zeppelin". The red cachet featuring a parrot on a branch was used on this flight to commemorate the 5th time the Graf Zeppelin had made this journey. A second red cachet was also used on this flight that features a hexagonal design with the inscription "DEUTSCHE LUFTPOST BERLIN - FRIEDRICHSHAFEN | Anschlussflug | zur 5. Südamerikafahrt | 1933 | des Luftschiffs | GRAF ZEPPELIN".

MUNICH to KANSAS CITY, USA
(8th Nov 1933)

The next cover was posted in MUNICH on 8th Nov 1933 and was destined for Kansas City, USA. The three stamps are 1933 issue Hindenburg Medallions, a single 5Rpf Michel 515, a single 8Rpf Michel 517 and a single 12Rpf Michel 519.

There is also a special roller cancel inscribed "In Briefaufschriften | genauangeben: | ZUSTELLPOSTAMT | Straβe und Hausnummer oder Brieffach" - 'In letterheads | specify: | DELIVERY POST OFFICE | Street and house number or mailbox'

MUNICH to HIER
(10th Nov 1933)

The cover below was posted in MUNICH on 10th Nov 1933 and features a meter cancellation advertising the "Bayerische Versicherungsbank Aktiengesellschaft".