Steve Kennedy, PA Postal History Society President, Philatelic Society of Lancaster County Member and longtime friend gives a presentation entitled “Elie Beatty Cashier of the Hagerstown Bank: 1807-1859.”
The Hagerstown Bank Find material consists primarily of correspondence directed to Elie Beatty, Esq., the institution’s cashier, and president. Beatty was a prominent citizen of Hagerstown, Maryland, having served as assistant postmaster, bank president, and a member of the Hagerstown Academy’s board of directors. Steve presented examples of covers that were addressed to Mr. Beatty from 1807 until his death in 1859.
Steve owns or has access to about 900 of the estimated 10,000 covers that were found and would like to start a census. Please look through your collection for any that you may have to help document this amazing philatelic find! Steve quoted D. Homer Kendall regarding these covers: “In terms of sheer volume of material, if not monetary value, it is likely that no other “find” of American covers has approached the magnitude of the Hagerstown Bank find of the 1930’s.”