Description: "The Catalogue of Money Order Office Number (MOON) Cancellations of British Columbia (1950-1973)" by Michael Sagar Privately Published by the authorAuthor: Michael Sagar, 199790 pages, 8½" x11", staple bound Black & whiteOriginal List Price $22.95 Condition: Pre-owned / LIKE NEW! Michael Sagar, of Richmond, B.C., has been chronicling the MOON cancels of Canada for more than two decades, during which time he produced six handbooks on the specialized area of collecting.The MOON system was introduced in 1923, said Sagar, who’s also secretary and treasurer of BNAPS Postal Stationery Study Group. “A four-digit number was assigned to each post office, presumably to ease with accounting,” he said. “Rather than Vancouver Sub Post Office Number 2, the entry would be ‘9812.’”The numbers first appeared on pre-cancelled stamps and post office forms after replacing the Money Order Transfer Office (MOTO) system.According to Sagar, integrating a post office’s MOON into a rubber cancel “started in earnest” in 1950 and continued until the MOON system became obsolete in the spring of 1973, when cancels with the six-digit Post Office Computer Organization Number (POCON) were introduced. Sagar said MOON cancels were the third of four families of cancels issued by the Post Office Department. They were generally rectangular and included the date; town name; and post office number. Numbers were assigned by province and then alphabetically within each province.HOW DID THE MOON SYSTEM WORK?Sagar said integration of a post office’s MOON into a rubber cancel (third from left) began in 1950. (Photo by Sagar)Sagar said each province was assigned a series of numbers for their post offices (Quebec was assigned 0001-1999, Ontario was assigned 2000-4999, and so on).“Holes were left in the assignments to accommodate potential name changes or expansions in urban areas,” he said. “Initially only ‘Accounting’ post offices – larger post offices with a full range of services – were assigned a MOON. In 1935, ‘non-accounting’ post offices – typically smaller, sometimes seasonal, with a narrower range of services including offering Money Orders in small amounts unto $15.99 – were assigned five-digit MOONs.”Sagar said paperwork such as money order forms, internal post office forms and receipts were printed with the post office’s MOON; however, the system eventually spread into postal markings and numbered precancels. “One of the initial problems with the MOON system was that Canada really needed 11,000 numbers, not 10,000 that a four-digit system would allow,” said Sagar. “The three Maritime provinces were assigned four-digit MOONs where the first character was an ‘X.’ When Newfoundland joined Confederation in 1949, their post offices were assigned a four-digit MOON starting with a ‘Y.’” Further expansion and computerization of the postal system required a new way of tracking post office finances, and by April 1973, Canada moved all post offices to the six-digit POCON system.FASCINATING & INEXPENSIVE: Sagar said his interest was piqued by MOON cancels while studying the postmarks of British Columbia. “I found them fascinating, cheap – at the time – and had little competition. When acquiring new B.C. MOON cancels became more difficult, I expanded into all the other provinces,” he said, adding he’s also a collector of the postal stationery of Canada and Newfoundland. See scan for actual book you are bidding on! Place your bid on what is shown.SHIPPING: is listed below but always request an invoice BEFORE paying to get an accurate shipping cost! If you are purchasing more than one book, the combined shipping cost will usually come down. Once you have paid, the shipping won't be adjusted. Shipping costs vary from country to country (and even province to province or state to state once the weight is over 500 grams) so the highest cost is quoted. Do yourself a favor and request an invoice when purchasing more than one book, album or accessory. Combined shipping offered on stamp purchases made within 5 days! You can reduce your shipping cost per item by bidding on several lots. Shipping is FREE on additional STAMP lots won if they are shipped in the same envelope! In order to take advantage of this offer, do NOT pay for each winning bid, one by one. Request an invoice from me when your bidding is finished and pay for all winning lots together. Combined orders of albums, accessories and publications are calculated based on the combined weight - not by adding the shipping costs listed in each lot! You will almost always save money by requesting an invoice BEFORE paying for the combined lots.Payment and Shipping: Successful bidders will be invoiced within 24 hours of purchase. You can pay for your purchase on line using your credit card through PayPal. If you are not registered with PayPal, please do so prior to bidding. Postage quoted does not include registration costs. We are not responsible for postal damage or loss so if you require insurance or registration please inquire about the additional cost. We ship anywhere in the world.Note: Books shipped outside North America, weighing more than 20 grams, are shipped by Canada Post International Surface Packet. Very economical but it means literally, by SURFACE, Delivery time to Europe is 4-6 weeks and to Australia/NZ, the timing is more like 7-8 weeks. If you cannot wait that long, other services are available but are expensive. Please inquire before you order if you require 1-2 week delivery.We ship anywhere in the world! Scott or Unitrade Catalog numbers used unless noted otherwise. Returns Policy: Satisfaction Guaranteed! Any lot returnable within 14 days for a complete refund if not satisfied. Buyer pays return shipping. DESCRIPTIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS USED. MNH= Mint Never Hinged or Un-mounted, MINT OG= Unused having been hinged with its original gum, NG= No gum, CTO= Canceled to order, OTHER ABBREVIATIONS USED: DG= disturbed or spotty gum, RG= re-gummed, NGW= natural gum wrinkle, LH= a lightly hinged copy, VLH= very lightly hinged, HR= has a hinge remit, HHR= has a heavy hinge remit, AD= some type of adhesion (such as paper, album offset, etc.) on its gum, PMG= pencil mark or notation on its reverse, FDC= First Day Cover or a First Date of Cancel, CR= crease, TE- tear, TH= Thin, MD= a minor defect, SF =space filler. Note: An ongoing incompatibility between eBay.com and eBay.ca forces buyers who are logged in on eBay.ca to make immediate payment for each individual item purchased from my eBay.com store. If you wish to make multiple purchases on one invoice and/or wish to delay payment for whatever reason (i.e. wait for auction listing results) you can get around the incompatibility by logging in on eBay.com.
Price: 9.99 USD
Location: Etobicoke, Ontario
End Time: 2024-12-29T21:21:47.000Z
Shipping Cost: 5.99 USD
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Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money Back
Country/Region of Manufacture: Canada
Topic: Canadian Postal History