PHILATELIC WEST

The Philatelic West was a stamp, coin, camera, mineral, curio, and general hobby magazine published by Lewis Theodore Brodstone from 1896-1930 in 89 volumes comprising 274 issues. The magazine was originally published as The Philatelic West : A Monthly Publication Devoted to the Interests of Philately and the Nebraska Philatelic Society (Organized 1892), serving as the NPS house organ. The title had undergone a few modifications over the years as other publications merged and collecting organizations began using Brodstone's brainchild as their house organ as well. For example, Philatelic West and Camera News, from December 1898 until it was renamed : Philatelic West and Collectors World beginning in February 1907, and The Philatelic West in October 1912, and reverted back to Philatelic West and Collectors World in September 1924.

Professional Librarians, Cataloguers, and Collectors are frequently perplexed not only by the changing titles, but also, the irregularity of the periodical and Brodstone's crazy numbering system. Volumes 1 & 2 each contained six issues. Volumes 3-5, each contained three issues apiece. However Volume 4 ends in June 1897 leaving a lacuna until Volume 5 which begins with January 1898. Volume 6 has only two issues. The remaining volumes each consist of three issues. The early issues had pagination but the page numbering got omitted in the first half of 1898 but resumed in June when it shot up to 24 pages per issue, but page numbering was discontinued again in Volume 8, January 1899. By April 1898 the standard 12 page magazine with wrappers or its printed covers grew to 16 pages. Over time the magazine became a thick book of 100 pages per issues each containing a photographic center fold of 4 pages on glossy stock of pictures of coins, postage stamps, collectors, coin shops, stamp shops, curio shops, dealers, guns, swords, collections, wampum, Indian relics, and all sorts of collectibles. Mistakes in numbering and months printed on the covers that sometime conflict with that on the masthead page show how quirky it can be to attempt to assemble a collection or correctly catalogue the issues.

The magazine has the distinction from most other hobby magazines of being illustrated with photographs of dealers and the stamp & coin shops, collectors, collections, and rare items not found anywhere else. Among the advertisers we often find well-known coin dealers who had their humble start in this invaluable publication.

Front and back of a very rare extent specimen of a mail in coupon of the Philatelic West giving the rates for advertisers in 1898. Courtesy Lupia Numismatic Library, Special Collection, Philatelic West.

Front and back of a very rare extent specimen of a mail in coupon of the Philatelic West giving the rates for advertisers in 1917. Courtesy Lupia Numismatic Library, Special Collection, Philatelic West.

The Philatelic West is a researchers gold mine, chock full of history chronicling the above named hobby fields with articles written by well known dealers which were not reprinted elsewhere including Farran Zerbe and Thomas L. Elder. For these reasons The Philatelic West is an invaluable source for original research by all serious researchers especially in the fields of stamps, coins, autographs, curios, guns, and other collectibles and memorabilia. The largest hoard of Philatelic West magazines is in The Lupia Numismatic Library containing about 1,600 issue. Anyone interested in buying individual copies or a complete, or a near complete set should write to john@numismaticmall.com.