Today in Postal History
This registered airmail cover was sent from Rancagua where
it received
five CDS.
Rancagua
is about 85 km south of Santiago in central Chile.
It was registered using a private registration label for the
Braden Copper Co.
Have you ever seen such an item?
The Braden Copper Co. was a member of a world
wide copper cartel formed in 1935.
The sender requested service "Via Linea Aereo Nacional hasta
Antofagasta alcance de vapor."
Linea Aereo Nacional was the national airline of Chile, now LAN-Chile.
The remainder requested Linea Aereo Nacional transit until Antofagasta
reaches steam (?).
I think this means that the mail would be forwarded from Antofagasta by
steamship.
The cover traveled to Santiago where its arrival was marked
by September 6 CDS.
Its next stop of Antofagasta, a Chilean port serving the mines inland
in the mountains.
The cover received a registry CDS (CERT.) in Antofagasta on September 8.
From there it would was transported to New York City.
Next stop was for two New York City Registry Division ovals on
September 24.
The elapsed time fits the steamship theory.
The red script R2608 was probably added there as a United States
registry serial number.
The cover was then forwarded to its final destination of
East
McKeesport, Pennsylvania.
East McKeesport is about 15 km southeast of Pittsburgh and 5 km
northeast of McKeesport.
There it was struck with a duplex CDS and oval barred killer dated
September 25.
The cover is franked with a nice variety of stamps.
There are seven airmails from the 1931 issue:
a block of four of the 5c yellow green and a pair of the 10c yellow
brown Condor over the Andes and
a single 50c black brown Airplane Crossing Andes (Scott C22, C23, and
C26).
In addition there are three from 1931 regular issues:
a 5c light green Cochrane lithographed, and a 25c blue and black Montt
and
a 50c deep green and black Zanartu with frame
lithographed and center
engraved (Scott 153, 167, and 169).
Finally there is a 8c slate Freire from 1918 printed from a locally
made plate (Scott 126).
(It is possibly from the worn plate version of 1921 - Scott 126.)
The total rate of 1.78 pesos probably doesn't fit any rating
so there is probably some philatelic aspect to the cover.
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