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Moveable Box Mail Under the Anglo-French Postal Conventions

Introduction

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Exhibit provided by
Doug McGill
This exhibit tells the story of a specific aspect of maritime mail between Britain and France following the introduction of adhesives in the 1840s, an event which caused a very rapid rise in the volume of Anglo-French mail, and a need for increased means of transporting it.

The 1843 and 1857 Anglo-French Postal Conventions introduced the concept maritime Moveable Box, whereby private vessels were authorized to carry mail which had been posted on small mailboxes on ships operating between the two countries, and was then delivered by the captains (or ship's owners) to post offices at the destination ports, resulting in British stamps with French cancellations, and vice versa.

The concept was a unique and vital foundation stone in postal history, being the first means of posting letters at other than a post office, post box or receiving house.

Although introduced with fanfare, and later giving rise to land-based systems such as TPOs, the Moveable Box system was not well administered. Its use was sporadic, and by the beginning of WWII it had tapered off to disappearance. Examples of its use are scarce, with many items in the exhibit being rare and, in some cases, unique.

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Frame 1

  1. Introduction
EARLY USAGE AND MARKINGS 1843-1857
  1. Early Usage and Markings
  2. Early Usage and Markings
  3. Early Usage and Markings
  4. Early Usage and Markings
  5. Early Usage and Markings
  6. Early Usage and Markings
  7. Early Usage and Markings
  8. The 1857 Convention: New Cachets and Updates
FRENCH PORTS RECEIVING CHANNEL ISLANDS MAIL
  1. St. Malo
  2. St. Malo
  3. St. Malo
  4. St. Malo
  5. St. Malo
  6. St. Malo
  7. St. Malo
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Frame 2

FRENCH PORTS RECEIVING CHANNEL ISLANDS MAIL (cont)
  1. St. Malo
  2. St. Malo
  3. St. Malo
  4. St. Malo
  5. St. Malo
  6. St. Malo
  7. St. Malo
  8. St. Malo
  9. St. Malo
  10. Granville
  11. Granville
  12. Granville
  13. Granville
  14. Granville
  15. Granville
  16. Granville
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Frame 3

FRENCH PORTS RECEIVING CHANNEL ISLANDS MAIL (cont)
  1. Cherbourg
  2. Port Bail
  3. Port Bail
  4. Port Bail
  5. Carteret
  6. Carteret
  7. Binic
  8. Plerin
FRENCH PORTS RECEIVING OTHER BRITISH MAIL
  1. Le Havre
  2. Le Havre
  3. Le Havre
  4. Boulogne-sur-Mer
  5. Dunkirk
  6. Dieppe
  7. Calais
  8. Morlaix
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Frame 4

CHANNEL ISLANDS PORTS RECEIVING FRENCH MAIL
  1. Jersey (St. Helier)
  2. Jersey (St. Helier)
  3. Jersey (St. Helier)
  4. Jersey (St. Helier)
  5. Jersey (St. Helier)
  6. Guernsey (St. Peter Port)
  7. Guernsey (St. Peter Port)
  8. Guernsey (St. Peter Port)
BRITISH MAINLAND PORTS RECEIVING CHANNEL ISLANDS & FRENCH MAIL
  1. London
  2. London
  3. London
  4. London
  5. London
  6. Southampton
  7. Southampton
  8. Southampton
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Frame 5

BRITISH MAINLAND PORTS RECEIVING CHANNEL ISLANDS & FRENCH MAIL (cont)
  1. Southampton
  2. Southampton
  3. Southampton
  4. Folkestone
  5. Newhaven
THE MEDITERRANEAN
  1. Alexandria
  2. Malta
  3. Marseille
  4. Marseille
WW1 AND THE INTERWAR YEARS - THE DEMISE OF THE MOVEABLE BOX
  1. WW1
  2. WW1
  3. The 1920s
  4. The 1930s
  5. The 1930s
  6. The Epilogue
  7. The Epilogue