United States of America - Pennsylvania - Bristol

From March 2012 the United States Postal Services introduced a number of permanent pictorial postmarks under the name Postmark America.

Postmark America service is a permanent, rubber hand stamp with rotating date plugs that is permitted for participating Post Offices to feature a symbolic image representing a town or region. Postmarking service is available only at windows when it does not interfere with normal retail operations. Postmasters can offer hand-back, will-call, or mail-back service. Postmark America service can be used for mail entering the mailstream or philatelic purposes.

Postmark America service affords tourists, customers, and collectors an opportunity to use and collect postmarks at any time. It also affords postmasters a way to generate revenue without having to staff or wait for events. Postmark America service is date sensitive, and back-dating is prohibited. Customers or collectors wanting a specific date must have their items presented at the Post Office on or before the date of service.

On 26 July 2012 a new postmark was published in the USPS Postal Bulletin for Bristol, Pennsylvania. It shows a covered bridge of which there are many in the county. Bucks County was home to more than 50 covered bridges at one time. Only 12 bridges remain, 10 of which can still carry vehicles.

Bristol Borough is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 37 km northeast of Center City Philadelphia, opposite Burlington, New Jersey on the Delaware River. Bristol Borough predates Philadelphia, being settled in 1681 and first incorporated in 1720. After 1834, the town became very important to the development of the American Industrial Revolution as the terminus city of the Delaware Canal. The canal and a short trip on the Delaware also gave the town access to the mineral resources available in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York. From its earliest days Bristol Borough was a centre of textile mills, foundries, milling, and miscellaneous manufacturing. By the 1880s Bristol Borough was home to many factories, including companies manufacturing wall paper and carpet. In World War I, the Bristol Borough docks had sufficient space for a shipyard to construct twelve building slips for the construction of merchant vessels.

The postmark can be obtained by writing to: Postmark America, Bristol Post Office, Postmaster, 699 Beaver Street, Bristol, PA  19007-9998, United States.

Apart from a postmark on the envelope, I got an extra impression on the blank card inside.

Date sent: 16 June 2017

Date postmark: 3 July 2017

Date received: 7 July 2017

Number of days: 21

Envelope in collection: 211

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico, officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the northeast Caribbean Sea, approximately 1.600 km southeast of Miami, Florida.

An archipelago among the Greater Antilles, located between the Dominican Republic and the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico includes the eponymous main island and several smaller islands, such as Mona, Culebra, and Vieques. The capital and most populous city is San Juan. The territory's total population is approximately 3,4 million. Spanish and English are the official languages of the executive branch of government, though Spanish predominates.

Originally populated by the indigenous Taíno people, Puerto Rico was colonized by Spain following the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1493. It was contested by the French, Dutch, and British, but remained a Spanish possession for the next four centuries. The island's cultural and demographic landscapes were shaped by the displacement and assimilation of the native population, the forced migration of African slaves, and settlement from the Canary Islands and Andalusia. In the Spanish Empire, Puerto Rico played a secondary but strategic role compared to wealthier colonies like Peru and New Spain. Spain's distant administrative control continued up to the end of the 19th century, producing a distinctive creole Hispanic culture and language that combined indigenous, African, and European elements. On 23 September 1868, Ramón Emeterio Betances unleashed a revolt against Spanish rule, declaring for the first time the idea of Puerto Ricans as a distinct people, with right to sovereignty. This revolt, known as El Grito de Lares, was eventually put down by Spanish forces, but the movement continued. In 1898, following the Spanish-American War, the United States acquired Puerto Rico under the terms of the Treaty of Paris. Since then, Puerto Rico has remained an unincorporated territorial possession, making it the world's oldest colony.

Puerto Ricans have been citizens of the United States since 1917, and can move freely between the island and the mainland. As it is not a state, Puerto Rico does not have a vote in the United States Congress, which governs the territory with full jurisdiction under the Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950. However, Puerto Rico does have one non-voting member of the House called a Resident Commissioner. As residents of a U.S. territory, American citizens in Puerto Rico are disenfranchised at the national level and do not vote for the president or vice president of the United States, and only some residents pay federal income tax. Like other territories and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico does not have U.S. senators. Congress approved a local constitution in 1952, allowing U.S. citizens of the territory to elect a governor. Puerto Rico's future political status has consistently been a matter of significant debate.

Since Puerto Rico does not issue stamps, I chose four US stamps with a Puerto Rico theme. First the flag from the Flags of our Nation series, two stamps from the tropical birds issue from 1998 and the stamp for the 250th anniversary of San Juan from 1971. The envelope came back from the San Juan main post office in just under a month, but again with a machine cancellation that ruined the two bird stamps.

Date sent: 6 June 2017

Date postmark: 29 June 2017

Date received: 4 July 2017

Number of days: 28

Envelope in collection: 209

United States of America - South Dakota

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of South Dakota, lying in the Midwestern region of the United States. It was the 40th state, admitted in 1889.

South Dakota is a U.S. state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who compose a large portion of the population and historically dominated the territory. South Dakota is the seventeenth largest by area, but the fifth smallest by population and the 5th least densely populated of the 50 United States. As the southern part of the former Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on 2 November 1889, simultaneously with North Dakota. Pierre is the state capital and Sioux Falls, with a population of about 187.200, is South Dakota's largest city.

South Dakota is bordered by the states of North Dakota (to the north), Minnesota (to the east), Iowa (to the southeast), Nebraska (to the south), Wyoming (to the west), and Montana (to the northwest). The state is bisected by the Missouri River, dividing South Dakota into two geographically and socially distinct halves, known to residents as "East River" and "West River".

Eastern South Dakota is home to most of the state's population, and the area's fertile soil is used to grow a variety of crops. West of the Missouri River, ranching is the predominant agricultural activity, and the economy is more dependent on tourism and defense spending. Most of the Native American reservations are in West River. The Black Hills, a group of low pine-covered mountains sacred to the Sioux, are in the southwest part of the state. Mount Rushmore, a major tourist destination, is there. South Dakota has a temperate continental climate, with four distinct seasons and precipitation ranging from moderate in the east to semi-arid in the west. The state's ecology features species typical of a North American grassland biome.

Humans have inhabited the area for several millennia, with the Sioux becoming dominant by the early 19th century. In the late 19th century, European-American settlement intensified after a gold rush in the Black Hills and the construction of railroads from the east. Encroaching miners and settlers triggered a number of Indian wars, ending with the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890. Key events in the 20th century included the Dust Bowl and Great Depression, increased federal spending during the 1940s and 1950s for agriculture and defense, and an industrialization of agriculture that has reduced family farming.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Pierreto be postmarked. It arrived back in over two months with a nice datestamp, but again with a terrible black machine postmark.

Date sent: 2 May 2017

Date postmark: 28 June 2017

Date received: 4 July 2017

Number of days: 63

Envelope in collection: 207

Guam

Guam is an unincorporated and organized territory of the United States in Micronesia in the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States, along with the Northern Mariana Islands. The capital city of Guam is Hagåtña and the most populous city is Dededo. The inhabitants of Guam are called Guamanians, and they are American citizens by birth. The indigenous Guamanians are the Chamorros, who are related to other Austronesian natives of Eastern Indonesia, the Philippines, and Taiwan. Guam has been a member of the Pacific Community since 1983.

In 2016, 162.742 people resided on Guam. Guam has an area of 540 km². In Oceania, it is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesia. Since the 1960s, the economy has been supported by two industries: tourism and the United States Armed Forces.

The indigenous Chamorros settled the island approximately 4.000 years ago. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, while in the service of Spain, was the first European to visit the island, on 6 March 1521. Guam was colonized by Spain in 1668 with settlers, including Diego Luis de San Vitores, a Catholic Jesuit missionary. Between the 16th century and the 18th century, Guam was an important stopover for the Spanish Manila Galleons. During the Spanish-American War, the United States captured Guam on 21 June 1898. Under the Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded Guam to the United States on 10 December 1898. Guam is among the 17 non-self-governing territories listed by the United Nations.

On7 December 1941, hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Guam was captured by the Japanese, who occupied the island for two and a half years. During the occupation, Guamanians were subjected to beheadings, forced labour, rape, and torture. American forces recaptured the island on 21 July 1944; Liberation Day commemorates the victory.

An unofficial but frequently used territorial motto is "Where America's Day Begins", which refers to the island's proximity to the International Date Line.

For the envelope from Guam I used the flag stamp from the Flags of our nation series and the 2007 air mail stamp with a view of Hagåtña Bay. The envelope arrived back in one month with two nice datestamps but also with a machine cancellation. Although different than earlier cancellations, it still ruined the beautiful stamps.

Date sent: 2 June 2017

Date postmark: 18 June 2017

Date received: 1 July 2017

Number of days: 29

Envelope in collection: 203

United States of America - Oklahoma

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Oklahoma, lying in the South Central region of the United States. It was the 46th state, admitted in 1907.

Oklahoma is bordered by the state of Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New Mexico on the west, and Colorado on the northwest. It is the 20th-most extensive and the 28th-most populous of the 50 United States. The state's name is derived from the Choctaw words okla and humma, meaning "red people". It is also known informally by its nickname "The Sooner State", in reference to the non-Native settlers who staked their claims on land before the official opening date of lands in the western Oklahoma Territory or before the Indian Appropriations Act of 1889, which increased European-American settlement in the eastern Indian Territory. Oklahoma Territory and Indian Territory were merged into the State of Oklahoma when it became the 46th state to enter the union on 16 November 1907. Its residents are known as Oklahomans (or colloquially "Okies"), and its capital and largest city is Oklahoma City.

A major producer of natural gas, oil, and agricultural products, Oklahoma relies on an economic base of aviation, energy, telecommunications, and biotechnology. Both Oklahoma City and Tulsa serve as Oklahoma's primary economic anchors, with nearly two-thirds of Oklahomans living within their metropolitan statistical areas.

With ancient mountain ranges, prairie, mesas, and eastern forests, most of Oklahoma lies in the Great Plains, Cross Timbers, and the U.S. Interior Highlands, a region prone to severe weather. More than 25 Native American languages are spoken in Oklahoma, ranking third behind Alaska and California.

Oklahoma is on a confluence of three major American cultural regions and historically served as a route for cattle drives, a destination for Southern settlers, and a government-sanctioned territory for Native Americans.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Oklahoma City to be postmarked. It arrived back in three weeks with a perfect datestamp inside a transparent cover to protect it from the sorting machine.

Date sent: 6 June 2017

Date postmark: 19 June 2017

Date received: 27 June 2017

Number of days: 21

Envelope in collection: 201

United States of America - District of Columbia

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope is not from a state, but from the capital of the United States, known as the District of Columbia.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington; D.C.; or the district, is the capital of the United States. Founded after the American Revolution as the seat of government of the newly independent country, Washington was named after George Washington, the first president of the United States and a Founding Father. As the seat of the United States federal government and several international organizations, Washington is an important world political capital. The city, located on the Potomac River bordering Maryland and Virginia, is one of the most visited cities in the world, with more than 20 million tourists annually.

The signing of the Residence Act on 16 July 1790, approved the creation of a capital district located along the Potomac River on the country's East Coast. The U.S. Constitution provided for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress, and the District is therefore not a part of any U.S. state. The states of Maryland and Virginia each donated land to form the federal district, which included the pre-existing settlements of Georgetown and Alexandria. The City of Washington was founded in 1791 to serve as the new national capital. In 1846, Congress returned the land originally ceded by Virginia, including the city of Alexandria; in 1871, it created a single municipal government for the remaining portion of the District.

Washington had an estimated population of 702.455 as of July 2018. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the city's daytime population to more than one million during the workweek.

All three branches of the U.S. federal government are centered in the District: Congress (legislative), the president (executive), and the Supreme Court (judicial). Washington is home to many national monuments, and museums, primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 177 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many international organizations, trade unions, non-profits, lobbying groups, and professional associations, including the World Bank Group, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Organization of American States.

A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973. However, Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. D.C. residents elect a non-voting, at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives, but the District has no representation in the Senate. District voters choose three presidential electors in accordance with the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation series, a stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of the foundation of the district, a commemorative stamp from 2003 and one from 2011 with the portrait of George Washington. I sent the envelope to the Washington main post office to be postmarked. It arrived back in just over a month with a perfect datestamp. Fortunately the envelope went through the American sorting machine back to front to the terrible wavy postmark was put on the back.

Date sent: 22 May 2017

Date postmark: 20 June 2017

Date received: 27 June 2017

Number of days: 36

Envelope in collection: 198

United States of America - Hawaii

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Hawaii, lying in the Pacific Ocean. It was the 50th state, admitted in 1959. Until now it is the last state to be admitted to the union.

The state encompasses nearly the entire Hawaiian archipelago, 137 islands spread over 2.400 km. The volcanic archipelago is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. At the southeastern end of the archipelago, the eight main islands are, in order from northwest to southeast: Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Maui, and Hawaiʻi. The last is the largest island in the group; it is often called the "Big Island" or "Hawaiʻi Island" to avoid confusion with the state or archipelago.

Hawaii is the 8th smallest geographically and the 11th least populous, but the 13th most densely populated of the 50 states. It is the only state with an Asian American plurality. Hawaii has over 1,4 million permanent residents, along with many visitors and U.S. military personnel. The state capital and largest city is Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu. The state's ocean coastline is about 1.210 km long, the fourth longest in the U.S., after the coastlines of Alaska, Florida, and California. Hawaii is the most recent state to join the union, on 21 August 1959. It was an independent nation until 1898.

Hawaii's diverse natural scenery, warm tropical climate, abundance of public beaches, oceanic surroundings, and active volcanoes make it a popular destination for tourists, surfers, biologists, and volcanologists. Because of its central location in the Pacific and 19th-century labor migration, Hawaii's culture is strongly influenced by North American and East Asian cultures, in addition to its indigenous Hawaiian culture.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Honolulu to be postmarked. It arrived back in just under a month with two perfect datestamps, inside another cover. This protected my cover from sorting machines with automatic postmarks.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 15 June 2017

Date received: 23 June 2017

Number of days: 28

Envelope in collection: 193

United States of America - Mississippi

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Mississippi, lying in the Southeastern region of the United States. It was the 20th state, admitted in 1817.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Jackson to be postmarked. It arrived back in just seventeen days with very nice datestamps, but unfortunately there was a terrible machine cancellation put over my stamps.

Date sent: 6 June 2017

Date postmark: 16 June 2017

Date received: 23 June 2017

Number of days: 17

Envelope in collection: 190

United States of America - South Carolina

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of South Carolina, lying in the Southeastern region of the United States. It was the 8th state, admitted in 1788.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Columbia to be postmarked. It arrived back in just seventeen days with very nice datestamps, but unfortunately there was a giant machine cancellation put over my stamps.

Date sent: 5 June 2017

Date postmark: 13 June 2017

Date received: 22 June 2017

Number of days: 17

Envelope in collection: 186

United States of America - Wyoming

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Wyoming, lying in the mountain region of the Western United States. It was the 44th state, admitted in 1890.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Cheyenne to be postmarked. It arrived back in almost a month with just the one very light datestamp and a giant machine cancellation.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 14 June 2017

Date received: 21 June 2017

Number of days: 26

Envelope in collection: 184

United States of America - Pennsylvania

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Pennsylvania, lying in the Northeastern, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the Southern United States. It was the 2nd state, admitted in 1787.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Harrisburg to be postmarked. It arrived back in just over two weeks with some of the most perfect postmarks I ever got from the United States.

Date sent: 5 June 2017

Date postmark: 15 June 2017

Date received: 20 June 2017

Number of days: 15

Envelope in collection: 180

United States of America - West Virginia

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of West Virginia, lying in the Appalachian region of the Southern United States. It was the 35th state, admitted in 1863.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Charleston to be postmarked. It arrived back with a nice postmark, but also with a terrible machine cancellation.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 13 June 2017

Date received: 20 June 2017

Number of days: 25

Envelope in collection: 178

United States of America - Montana

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Montana, lying in the northwestern region of the United States. It was the 41st state, admitted in 1889.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Helena to be postmarked. It arrived back in almost four weeks with just one, but a perfect datestamp. To protect the envelope the Helena postmaster sent it back inside a transparent cover where my address was barely visible. Still it arrived.

Date sent: 24 May 2017

Date postmark: 13 June 2017

Date received: 20 June 2017

Number of days: 27

Envelope in collection: 177

United States of America - North Dakota

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of North Dakota, lying in the Midwestern and northern regions of the United States. It was the 39th state, admitted in 1889.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Bismarck to be postmarked. It arrived back in just twenty-five days with two perfect datestamps.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 14 June 2017

Date received: 20 June 2017

Number of days: 25

Envelope in collection: 176

United States of America - Alaska

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Alaska, lying in the northwest of the United States. It was the 49th state, admitted in 1959.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Juneau to be postmarked. It arrived back in just fifteen days with two perfect datestamps.

Date sent: 5 May 2017

Date postmark: 13 June 2017

Date received: 20 June 2017

Number of days: 15

Envelope in collection: 175

United States of America - Nevada

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Nevada, lying in the western region of the United States. It was the 36th state, admitted in 1864.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Carson City to be postmarked. It arrived back in eighteen days with a nice, although a bit difficult to read datestamp, but again there was a large machine postmark on the envelope form the city of Reno.

Date sent: 24 May 2017

Date postmark: 9 June 2017

Date received: 17 June 2017

Number of days: 24

Envelope in collection: 172

United States of America - New York

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of New York, lying in the northeastern region of the United States. It was the 11th state, admitted in 1788.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation, State birds and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Albany to be postmarked. It arrived back in eighteen days with perfect datestamps.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 6 June 2017

Date received: 13 June 2017

Number of days: 18

Envelope in collection: 169

United States of America - Louisiana

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Louisiana, lying in the south central region of the United States. It was the 18th state, admitted in 1812.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Baton Rouge to be postmarked. It arrived back in eighteen days with a nice datestamp, but unfortunately also with a machine postmark.

Date sent: 26 May 2017

Date postmark: 6 June 2017

Date received: 13 June 2017

Number of days: 18

Envelope in collection: 168

United States of America - Ohio - Zoar

From March 2012 the United States Postal Services introduced a number of permanent pictorial postmarks under the name Postmark America.

Postmark America service is a permanent, rubber hand stamp with rotating date plugs that is permitted for participating Post Offices to feature a symbolic image representing a town or region. Postmarking service is available only at windows when it does not interfere with normal retail operations. Postmasters can offer hand-back, will-call, or mail-back service. Postmark America service can be used for mail entering the mailstream or philatelic purposes.

Postmark America service affords tourists, customers, and collectors an opportunity to use and collect postmarks at any time. It also affords postmasters a way to generate revenue without having to staff or wait for events. Postmark America service is date sensitive, and back-dating is prohibited. Customers or collectors wanting a specific date must have their items presented at the Post Office on or before the date of service.

On 20 May 2017 a new postmark was introduced in Zoar, a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 169 at the 2010 census. The community was founded in 1817 by German religious dissenters as a utopian community, which survived until 1853. Much of the village's early layout survives, as do many buildings from its utopian origins. Most of the community was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1969 as the Zoar Historic District, and was designated a National Historic Landmark District in 2016. Some of the historic buildings are now operated as museum properties.

The postmark can be obtained by writing to: Postmark America, National Historic Landmark Zoar Village, Postmaster, PO Box 9998, Zoar, OH 44697-9998, United States.

Date sent: 29 May 2017

Date postmark: 5 June 2017

Date received: 13 June 2017

Number of days: 15

Envelope in collection: 167

United States of America - Tennessee

In my World envelope collection I do not just want to have envelopes from stamp-issuing countries and territories, but also from other regions. This includes the 50 states of the United States of America. This envelope comes from the state of Tennessee, lying in the southeastern region of the United States. It was the 16th state, admitted in 1796.

The stamps were affixed by me and come from the Flags of our nation and Greetings series and the stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood. I sent the envelope to the post office in the capital Nashville to be postmarked. It arrived back in twenty days with two nice and perfect datestamps.

Date sent: 24 May 2017

Date postmark: 5 June 2017

Date received: 13 June 2017

Number of days: 20

Envelope in collection: 166