Leo August (March 2, 1914 – December 4, 1997), of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, was an American

philatelist Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. While closely associated with stamp collecting and the study of postage, it is possible ...

who, as a

stamp dealer A stamp dealer is a company or an individual who deals in stamps and philatelic products. It also includes individuals who sell postage stamps for day to day use or revenue stamps for use on court documents. Stamp dealers who sell to Stamp collect ...

and publisher, created interest and awareness in the collecting of first day covers through the introduction in 1939 of "ArtCraft" engraved illustrated (or "

cachet In philately, a cachet () is a printed or stamped design or inscription, other than a Cancellation (mail), cancellation or pre-printed postage, on an envelope, postcard, or postal card to commemorate a postal or philatelic event. There are both ...

ed") envelopes for use as first day covers. He also established the landmark line of "White Ace"

stamp album Stamp albums are books used to house a collection of postage stamps. Overview Albums are a popular means of storing and displaying stamp collections for both beginners as well as accomplished collectors. They range from simple bound volumes int ...

s. ArtCraft became one of the world's most popular cachets.

Albums and cachets

In 1933 Leo and his brother Samuel formed the Washington Stamp Exchange on Washington Street in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

. In 1939 they established the Washington Press, which created and sold ''White Ace'' album pages for collectors. They also printed and sold high-quality envelopes bearing an ''Artcraft'' (later "ArtCraft") cachet of each anticipated United States stamp to be issued, so that stamp collectors could have the envelope franked and canceled by the post office with a “first day of issue” cancellation.

Philatelic philanthropy

Leo and his brother were very interested in expanding the hobby of collecting first day covers and helped found the American First Day Cover Society in 1955 and supported it financially during its early years. He also helped create interest for the hobby of first day covers by instituting awards at various stamp shows and exhibitions. Leo was a benefactor of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

National Postal Museum The National Postal Museum, located in Washington, D.C., is the primary postal museum of the United States. It covers large portions of the postal history of the United States and other countries. It was established through joint agreement be ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

and

American Philatelic Society The American Philatelic Society (APS) is the largest nonprofit stamp collecting foundation of philately in the world. Both the membership and interests of the society are worldwide. History The organization, originally named the ''American Phila ...

Bellefonte, Pennsylvania The Borough of Bellefonte is a borough in and the county seat of Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is approximately 12 miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania metropolitan statistical area. ...

, and one of the founders of the

Cardinal Spellman Francis Joseph Spellman (May 4, 1889 – December 2, 1967) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of New York from 1939 until his death in 1967. From 1932 to 1939, Spellman served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese o ...

Philatelic Museum on the campus of Regis College in

Weston, Massachusetts Weston is an affluent town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located approximately west of Boston. At the time of the 2020 United States census, the population of Weston was 11,851. Weston was incorporated in 1713, and protect ...

Honors and awards

Leo received numerous honors for his work in the field of philately. He was awarded the

Luff Award The Luff Award is awarded by the American Philatelic Society (commonly known as the APS) for meritorious contributions to philately by living philatelists. Established The award was established in 1940 in memory of John N. Luff, distinguished ph ...

in 1990 by the American Philatelic Society for outstanding contributions to philately, and was named Man of the Year in 1997 by the American First Day Cover Society. In 1998 he was named to the

American Philatelic Society Hall of Fame The American Philatelic Society Hall of Fame award honors deceased philatelists who have contributed significantly to the field of national and/or international philately. History The APS ''Hall of Fame'' award was founded at the 1940 American Phil ...

Legacy

The Leo and Samuel August Memorial Award for best topical first day cover exhibit is given on an annual basis by the American First Day Cover Society. And, in his will, Leo provided a large bequest to The

American Philatelic Research Library The American Philatelic Research Library (APRL), based in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, is the largest public philatelic library in the United States. The library serves the needs of the members of the American Philatelic Society (APS) – with which ...

. The

External links

APS Hall of Fame – Leo August

The Washington Press
{{DEFAULTSORT:August, Leo 1914 births 1997 deaths American philatelists American stamp dealers Businesspeople from New Jersey 20th-century American businesspeople American Philatelic Society

Albums and cachets

Philatelic philanthropy

Honors and awards

Legacy

See also

External links