Saturday, June 19, 2010

Great Lakes Paquebot Mail from Massena, N.Y.

In May 1962, the port of Massena, N.Y., on Lake Ontario, began providing paquebot service for ships sailing through the St. Lawrence Seaway. Mail posted on ships could be posted franked with the postage stamps of the country whose flag the ship carried.

a) First Week of Service Souvenir Cover


May 20 ,1962


First Week of Service cachet

b) Commercial Mail 1972

This Centennial period letter was sent to Don Mills on July 3 1972. The Massena post office applied its "PAQUEBOT" handstamp in purple ink:





c) Crewman's Correspondence 1975

The cover below was mailed by a crew member of the M.V. Canadian Progress to Woodstock, Ontario, and cancelled at Massena on June 9, 1975. His letter describes paquebot service:





June 3, 1975


Paquebot handstamped in black ink


M.V. Canadian Progress