"Combat Insignia" Album #1

U.S. First Day Cover Cachet Display Catalog:
World War II Patriotics: "Combat Insignia" Poster Stamp Albums

(last updated .05-22-2024)

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      This page displays all six (6) known Albums for the over 251 numbered "Combat Insignia" Stamps produced by Robert Lash Robbins (19?? - 19??) (Postamp Publishing Company / Poster Stamp Publishing Company), Chicago, Illinois -- Publisher: Hearst Publications, Inc. and The Light Newspapers, (1942 - 1944), San Antonio, Texas. Plans are to someday include complete PDF scans of all albums on this page and on the World War II Poster Stamps page. Except as noted by "{A}" (my personal collection), all other displayed scans were found on the Web.

Album sizes: Volumes 1-5: 7-1/2" x 10-1/4" -- Volume 6: 8-1/2" x 5"

      The following copyright dates are what are printed on Numbers 1-201. The fifth set have no date on the stamps, and I have not yet seen the sixth set of stamps. However, according to the "Poster Stamp Bulletin", Vol. 9(5), October 1944, page 1, referring to the fifth set, "Here is a New War Insignia series of Poster Stamps (50 in all) just published." .... "Price complete $0.25. These Poster Stamps and Album may be purchased from Poster Stamp Publishing Company, 2445 S. Damen Avenue, Chicago, Illinois." The first set was announced on page 1 of the "Poster Stamp Bulletin", Vol. 7(2), April 1942.
      Thanks to William M. Senkus, back issues, all except two issues, are on-line at: Index and Scans of Poster Stamp Bulletin, 1936-1951 .

What's New on this page

      Volume 1, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 1 - 50

      Volume 2, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 51 - 101 (the only volume with 51 stamps)

      Volume 3, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 102 - 151

      Volume 4, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 152 - 201

      Volume 1, Series 2, 1944, Combat Insignia 202 - 251 (aka Volume 5)

      1943, Unnumbered sixth volume (aka Volume 6) -- Scans wanted of all 200 stamps

      Advertisements

      Specially overprinted price stamps

      Known mailing envelopes
Newspaper logos seen on Album covers:
      Cleveland Press -- Volume 2
      Detroit Times -- Volume 1 -- Volume 2 -- Volume 3
      Los Angeles Examiner -- Volume 1 -- Volume 2 -- Volume 3
      New York Mirror -- Volume 1
      San Francisco Examiner -- Volume 1 -- Volume 2

1. Volume 1, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 1 - 50
         1) Los Angeles Examiner front/back covers {A}, note the plane's tail carries over to the back cover; 2) Detroit Times (eBay); 3) New York Mirror (eBay); 4) San Francisco Examiner (eBay) 5) The Pittsburgh Press {A} 6) The Light (San Antonio, TX) (eBay ***) 7) The Chicago Daily News (eBay ***) 8) Times Union (Albany, NY) (eBay) 9) no newspaper logo (eBay)
                                
2. Volume 2, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 51 - 101 (the only volume with 51 stamps)
         At this time I do not know how #101 was shipped to customers. The complete sheet of stamps included with each Volume 2 Album only has #51 - #100.
         1) Los Angeles Examiner front damaged/back covers {A}; 2) San Francisco Examiner (eBay); 3) Detroit Times (eBay); 4) Cleveland Press (eBay); 5), 6), 7) no newspaper logo (eBay)
                             
3. Volume 3, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 102 - 151
         1) Los Angeles Examiner front/back covers {A}; 2) Detroit Times (eBay); 3), 4) no newspaper logo (eBay)
                    
4. Volume 4, 1942 and 1943, Combat Insignia 152 - 201
         All) no newspaper logo (eBay)
                 
5. Volume 1, Series 2, 1944, Combat Insignia 202 - 251 (aka Volume 5)
         Front/back covers {A}
           
6. 1943, Unnumbered sixth volume (aka Volume 6), Combat Insignia 1 - 200 *
         * Note that these stamps numbered 1 - 200 are NOT the same stamps that are numbered 1 - 200 in Volumes 1 - 4.
         This is a 24 page, 8-1/2" x 5" album for 200 more stamps, available in four separate Sets of 20, 60, 60 and 60 stamps each.
         Poster Stamp Bulletin, October 1943, page 1: "200 full-color" ... "37 of these Poster Stamps are duplication of ... stamps in ...Series 1, 2, 3 and 4, while 163 are new."
         The three copies of this album I bought at eBay came with no stamps. This is where the "duplicates" noted on the display page came from. The stamps shown in the Ad below match those published by Robert Lash Robbins in the first five volumes. There are spaces for 200 stamps and the inside and outside back covers are blank.
           
7. Advertisements:
         1) Ad for the sixth volume (aka Volume 6) above, source and date unknown.
   
8. Specially overprinted price stamps:
         These are overprinted "Combat Insignia" Poster Stamps I have seen mostly online on very few of the Volume #1-4 Album covers. I own seven actual examples. These are stamps with the empty Album's retail price overprinted on them and then they were stuck on the Album covers for over the counter sales. I don't know if prices were overprinted on every existing stamp, or whether an un-separated overprinted pair or other multiples exist. It seems likely that these stamps were never sold separately to the public and they probably exist only stuck on an Album. Therefore, unless it can be proven otherwise, if someone tries to sell you one of these stamps which is mint with original gum, it might be a counterfeit, or a soaked-off stamp re-gummed. You should consider having such a stamp expertised. It is unknown how many other different stamps have this overprint.
         Known overprinted prices on "Combat Insignia" #21, #22, #24, #25 {A}, #26, #27, #31 {A}, #33, #34, #35, #36, #37, #38 {A}, #41 {A}, #46, #47, #48
                                                     
9. Known mailing envelopes:
         Type 1) Chicago Daily News (eBay ***) / Type 2) Los Angeles Examiner, two examples {A}
           

Page created by Douglas H. Henkle (Contact): henkle@pobox.com