When I first started collecting stamps, one of the issues that attracted my eye was the Presidential issue of 1938. Figure 1, Used 13¢ Presidential, pictures the value from the set containing the bust of our 13th president, Millard Fillmore. In those days, you could readily purchase inexpensive packets of stamps that contained sets or portions of sets of used stamps. Those packets of stamps, which were usually priced from 10¢ to $1, were available from a variety of suppliers, including H. E. Harris. I usually, confined myself to the 10¢ and 25¢ packets, because a dollar was a big investment for me in the mid to late 1950s. I would make regular trips to the local hobby shop and to the Woolworth’s dime store, which had a hobby area that sold stamps and coins. Whenever one of those stores got in a new supply of stamp packets, it was like Christmas for me. You never knew what treasures might show up in one of those packets. The larger packets displayed some items in the front behind a plastic film and had additional unseen stamps in the back of the envelope that contained the remaining stamps. Although the better items were always displayed in the front, I always believed I was going to be the lucky one to discover some rare treasure in the back of the packet.

Figure 1.  Used 13¢ Presidential

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