Columbus, Ga. 5¢ blue 19XU1 handstamped postmaster’s provisional which were only intended for local use. As this letter was traveling outside of Columbus, a Confederate stamp was affixed and canceled with a town postmark. The letter was addressed to Amos Sawyer, Esq., Berlin, Mass via Norfolk & Flag of Truce. At the exchange point, the Confederate stamp was removed, as required (but often ignored) and it made its way through the U.S. mail with a US 65, 3¢ rose, postmarked OLD POINT COMFORT / VA // JAN / 28. Verso has an offset of the Columbus provisional handstamp, sealed tear at bottom. This cover is a perfect demonstration of how the postal system was supposed to work. $800.

Amos Sawyer, Jr. was the proprietor of the Berlin stage line from 1837 to 1865 was according to William H. Houghton’s History of the Town of Berlin. The Berlin, Bolton, and Feltonville (Hudson) stagecoach line to and from Boston, Massachusetts, carried passengers and mail. Vital Records of Berlin for the period list Sawyer’s death date as August 15, 1866, which corresponds with a change in handwriting in the last records of the stagecoach line’s accounts as they had been recorded since 1854. The business seems to have been carried on by L. Arnold for two years following Sawyer’s death. Lorren Arnold was Sawyer’s son-in-law.