This article considers the basic rates to the United States from April 1, 1954:
1. Letter
a) Surface
The surface letter rate was 5 cents for the first ounce and three cents for each additional ounce.
Quebec to Minneapolis, October 3 1956
Fisheries Research Board of Canada, Halifax to Cambridge, July 15, 1958
5 cent "G" overprint paying the surface letter rate
Ottawa to East Providence, R.I., July 27 1957
Stamps from booklet
Ottawa barrel cancellation
Toronto to Springfield, Mass., December 12, 1961
8 cents paying the 2 ounce surface letter rate
5 cents 1st ounce + 3 cents 2nd ounce
Department of National Defence, Toronto to Milwaukee, August 1958
11 cents paying the 3 ounce letter rate
Sarnia to Fairhaven, Mass., February 6 1958
17 cents paying the 5 ounce letter rate
Envelope sealed by US Post Office Department
Shortpaid Letters
Edmonton to Caldwell, N.J., August 17 1956
Unpaid and taxed 10 cents, double the deficiency
Toronto to Buffalo, August 15 1956
1 cent shortpaid and charged 2 cents
Buffalo Postage Due meter tape August 17, 1956 for 8 cents. More than one due item for the addressee.
Edmonton to Seattle, March 5 1963 (The 2 cent Cameo was issued on May 2, 1963)
Shortpaid 1 cent and taxed 2 cents
Seattle postage due meter affixed ( 2 cents)
Letter could not be delivered and returned to sender
VOIDED stamped over the postage due meter
Montreal to Los Angeles, April 5 1954
4 cent Karsh was "in-period", replaced by the Wilding 4 cents denomination on June 10, 1954
1 cent shortpaid and taxed 2 cents
Undeliverable Mail : No Return Address
London to Napa, Calif., December 17, 1956
The addressee had moved without leaving a return address. Returned to Canada by San Franciso post office, January 11, 1957, and forwarded to the Undeliverable Mail Office (UMO) Toronto. Toronto UMO meter applied January 17, 1957 and No. 12 handstamp January 18, 1957. The letter would have been returned in an ambulance envelope and the sender charged 5 cents for the service.
Toronto UMO meter, January 17, 1957
Toronto UMO 12 handstamp
January 18, 1957
Montreal to Benton Harbor, October 31, 1955
5 cents surface letter rate
The letter was returned to the sender whose name was on the envelope but not the return address. The letter was forwarded to the Montreal Undeliverable Mail Office (UMO). The return address was obtained without having to open the letter. The UMO returned the letter and 5 cents was charged for this service. All markings are on the cover because an ambulance envelope was not required.
Montreal Undeliverable Mail Office handstamp
No. 6
b) Air Mail
The air mail rate was 7 cents for the first ounce and 5 cents for each additional ounce. The 7 cent rate had been introduced on April 1, 1943.
Halifax to Boston, May 14, 1959
7 cent air mail rate
CNR perfins
Department of Agriculture, Winnipeg to Beltsville, Md., August 22 1958
"G" overprint on 7 cent stamp
Ottawa to Swarthmore, Pa., April 20 1954
Prepaid with Karsh stamps still "in-period"
1 cents convenience overpayment
Fort Macleod to Antrim, N.H., October 19, 1961
12 cents paying the 2 ounce air mail rate to the United States
Lester Pearson Correspondence
Lester Pearson was the Minister of External Affairs when the letter below was sent to David Rockefeller in 1957. Later that year, Pearson was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Pearson was the opposition leader from 1958 to 1963, becoming Prime Minister from 1963 to 1968.
Pearson personal correspondence
House of Commons, Ottawa to New York, April 19 1957
7 cents air mail letter rate
Montreal to Batavia, N.Y., August 21, 1955
7 cents air mail rate
Shortpaid 2 cents and taxed 4 cents
2. Post Cards
a) Surface
On April 1, 1954, the surface post card rate to the United States increased from 3 cents to 4 cents.
Department of Agriculture, London to Providence, September 27 1961
4 cent "G" overprint
Goose Airport, Labrador to Cleveland, December 7 1956
Calgary Stampede
Calgary Stampede cachet and Exhibition Post Office hand stamp, July 15, 1906
4 cents paying the surface post card rate to State College, Pa.
Shortpaid
Cap De La Madeleine to Warren, R.I., July 11, 1959
Shortpaid 1 cent and taxed 2 cents
Toronto to Ocean City, New Jersey, July 23, 1960
2 cents shortpaid and taxed 4 cents
3. Printed Matter
The printed matter rate was 2 cent for the first two ounces and 1 cent for each additional 2 ounces.
Toronto to Inland Pond, Vermont, November 5 1958
2 cent precancelled stamp paying the printed matter rate
Montreal to addressee c/o Southern Pacific Railway, Los Angeles, December 11 1956
- redirected to San Francisco
- Forwarded from San Francisco to Oakland and 3 cent definitive stamp with Southern Pacific perfin (SP) affixed and cancelled December 20, 1956
Pentothal "Dear Doctor" Post Card
Between 1954 and 1968, Abbot Laboratories mailed almost 170 different post cards from 70 countries promoting Pentothal. The card below is a typical example:
2 cent precancelled Wilding paying the printed matter rate to Fresno (undated)
The card starts off : "Here in Quebec...":
Bridgewater, N.S., to Worcester Mass., c. 1959
27 cents would have paid the 52 ounce printed matter rate
Official Mail
Department of Agriculture, St. John's to St. Paul, November 23 1963
Late use of 2 cent official stamp
3A. Second Class Mail : Newspapers and Periodicals
Ottawa to Cheltenham, Pa., October 1, 1960
Second Class Rate :
2 cents for the 1st 4 ounces
1 cent for each additional 4 ounces
3 cents paid the 4oz.-8oz. rate
(This could also have been sent at the printed matter rate : 3 cents for 4 oz.)
Re-direction of Publication in Canada
If the addressee of a publication mailed in the United States moved and filed a change of address, the Postmaster was to do the following:
- redirect the publication to the new address, and
- immediately notify the publisher of the new address of the addressee which was to be endorsed "2 cents postage due", quoting the name and address and all numbers and letters appearing on the address label
Change of Address Notice to Publisher card
Letter Carrier Section Toronto to Bergenfield, N.J., August 4, 1960
Addressee moved from Toronto to Drayton, Ontario
4. Special Services
a) Registration
The minimum registration fee was 20 cents which provided indemnity up to $25.00.
Montreal, Mont Royal, to Tamaqua, Pa., August 11, 1958
5 cents surface postage + 20 cents registration fee
St. Stephen, N.B., to Portland, Maine, November 30 1959
5 cents surface postage + 20 cents registration fee
Bangor & Boston RPO
Nov. 30, 1959
Louis J. Iott
Montreal to Hollywood, June 25, 1955
31 cents paying the 3 ounce registered surface letter rate to the United States
11 cents postage + 20 cent registration
Vancouver to Anamosa, Iowa, May 4 1960
7 cents air mail + 20 cents registration fee
b) Special Delivery
The special delivery fee was 10 cents.
Alliston to New Smyrna Beach, Florida, December 21, 1961
17 cents paying the 7 cent air mail postage + 10 cents registration fee
Hamilton to Cleveland, November 2, 1959
5 cents surface rate + 10 cents special delivery
G overprints
Calgary to Monrovia, Calif., August 7 1959
7 cent letter air mail rate + 10 cent special delivery fee
George Marler Correspondence
In addition to being the Minister of Transport from 1954 to 1957, George Marler was a noted Canadian philatelist whose writings include
The Admiral Issue of Canada.
Ottawa to New York, November 27 1956
"G" overprint stamps paying the 17 cent air mail, special delivery rate
Marler's initials
Free mail not available to the United States
Special Delivery and Registered
Prescott to Struthers, Ohio, June 6 1958
Air mail postage.................7 cents
Special Delivery fee...........10
Registration.....................20
TOTAL............................ 37 cents
(Last change Tuesday, July 13, 2010)
