Our visiting speakers this afternoon were Stuart Henderson and Tony Hoad, who both happen to be members. They were down to entertain and they certainly did that.First up was Stuart with Propaganda Labels of WWII from around the world. He showed us various labels that had various messages depending on whether they were economic, diplomatic, morale boosting, or military. We were treated to some wonderful colourful labels which could be stuck on various items from envelopes, packages, invoices, parcels, and indeed a lot were made into posters to be hung in officers and factories. Most of the labels would now be non-pc with Canada being one of the most patriotic.
The USA churned out millions of anti-war labels until the bombing of Pearl Harbour. Then came, Defence Bonds, Saving Certificates, Buy Victory Bonds etc., and you could collect them all in a War Poster Album.
There were millions of labels issued around the world in WWII but surprisingly there are very few around today.
Tony Hoad first of all displayed the Falkland Islands and its dependencies in the second half. He showed us various stamps and printings, the first being issued in 1933. George Roberts was the designer of many of the stamps from the ½p to £1 which depicted scenes from the islands. He also showed us Madame Joseph forgeries and the 1946 map issue with its many varieties.
Tony also displayed Newfoundland as he was a great admirer of the Caribou stamps, issued in 1919. This was further enhanced when he was a personal guide for the WWI battlefield tours of the Newfoundland Regiment battles. The Newfoundland Regiment has a monument erected at Beaumont-Hamel with a Caribou statue as its symbol. He also displayed various airmail material when Arthur Sullivan set-up Newfoundland Airways in the early 1930s.