Lot
49 
(Ohio) Kelley's Island (O.), Printed Shaded Map Town Postmark, with "Feby 11th" manuscript date, showing island fully shaded, intact frameline all around and "Brainard Clev" imprint at bottom, on buff ca. 1853 cover to East Rockport, Ohio, franked with 1851, 3¢ dull red and manuscript canceled; small cover restoration at top right and partial backflap, otherwise Very Fine, the discovery example of this first type shaded map cancellation - a great classic fancy printed illustrated cancellation rarity.Estimate $4,000 - 6,000.
THE UNIQUE EARLY FIRST TYPE FULL SHADED ISLAND MAP CANCELLATION OF KELLEY'S ISLAND, OHIO.
Kelley's Island, O. is a small island in Lake Erie north of Marblehead and near Sandusky, not far from Cleveland. Members of a family named Kelley owned the island from the 1840's. Early on, mail was transported by sailboat and than later by steamboats to Sandusky. The fist post office on the island was established around May of 1852 with George Kelley appointed the first postmaster on the 13th of that month. At that time, the population of the island was around 500 residents.
It is not known who devised the pre-printed map postmark or where the envelopes were actually printed, however the earlier type postmarks, said to date from 1853 to 1860, show the engraver's "Brainard Clev" imprint at bottom left. Cleveland city directories list an engraver J. Brainard from 1850-66 an since he was an engraver, it is believed the cancel was engraved on copper rather than being a woodcut.
Three types of the postmark are known: This first type showing heavy shading within the outline of the island and lacking the typeset "O" for Ohio below town name. This was altered to the second type, likely very early on, to achieved greater visibility of the town name with the "O" added at this time. The third type, mostly likely cause due wear and/or edge truncation of the plate, lacks the outer frame line and engraver's imprint. It is interesting to note that after retiring of this device, a member of the Kelley family used a similar map design as a corner card as grape grower's in the 1860's.