Klussendorf cancellation machines were installed in over 300 Canadian post offices beginning in November 1983. Canada Post purchased the desk-top Model 280/5 cancellers from the German manufacturer to replace the Pitney-Bowes machines which had been in operation for over forty years.
Kapuskasing Pitney-Bowes cancellation
Kapuskasing Klussendorf cancellation
All Klussendorf machines were supplied with a "POSTAL CODE / CODE POSTAL" slogan die which could be easily replaced with a different slogan.
This posting is organized as follows:
1. Standard Dater
2. Canada and Postal Code Dater
3. Slogan Cancellation
4. Colour Cancellation
5. No City Name in Dater
6. Philatelic Klussendorf's
7.Quebec Oversized Mail Cancellation
8. Conclusion
1. Standard Dater
Town name at the top of the dater and province (two letter abbreviation at the bottom of the dater.
Port Hope
August 17, 1985
DAY - MONTH- YEAR - TIME
Ingersoll
December 8, 1987
Acton
Cobourg
Armstrong, B.C.
September 26, 2008
2. Canada and Postal Code Dater
The cover below was cancelled at Knowlton, Quebec. The dater does not have the town name nor the province. At the top of the dater is "Canada" and at the bottom is the Knowlton postal code J0E 1V0.
Knowlton, June 2, 1995
3. Slogan Cancellations
Several dozen different slogan cancellations were used with Klussendorf machines. A few are shown below.
Edson
January 29, 1986
ALBERTA WINTER GAMES
JEUX D'HIVER D'ALBERTA
26 FEBRUARY TO 2 MARCH
DU 26 FEVRIER AU 2 MARS
EDSON 1986
Picton
July 21, 1987
150 YEARSSESQUICENTENNIALUN CIECLE ET DEMI150 ANS
Amherst
July 6, 1989
AMHERST CENTENNIALCENTENAIRE DE AMHERST1889 - 1989
Creston
June 29, 1989
BLOSSOM FESTIVALFESTIVAL DES FLEURSVICTORIA DAY WEEKENDFETE DE LA REINE
Maxville
The town of Maxville celebrated its centennial in 1991. To mark the occasion a slogan cancellation was produced but the town did not have a Klussendorf machine. A temporary machine with the town-province hub removed was placed in operation from June 21, 1991 to July 7, 1991.
July 10, 1991 (error date)
MAXVILLE CENTENNIAL (Thistle )
4. Colour Cancel
In 1989, the Town of Listowel promoted its Irish "Paddyfest" celebrations with the use of a slogan using the usual black ink. The following year, green ink was used during the slogan's run from January 8 to March 17, 1990.
Listowel, January 16, 1990
Klussendorf cancel in green ink
5. No Town Name in Dater
Return address Chicoutimi
March 8, 1991
Return address St-Aime-Des-Lacs (PQ)
February 20, 2005
6. Philatelic
Ottawa : ORAPEX 85 show slogan
Postal Museum
February 26, 1985
7. Quebec Oversized Mail Cancellation
The Quebec cancel shown below was not a Klussendorf product. Canada Post technicians at Quebec constructed the cancellation device to handle oversized letters.
Quebec, May 17, 1989
8. Conclusion
In the 1990s Canada Post centralized mail cancellation and sorting. Forward mail from the hundreds of towns which cancelled their own letters was now transported to processing plants for handling and sorting. Klussendorf usage was then limited to local mail and eventually ceased.
The introduction of the Klussendorfs in the 1980s sparked a great deal of collector interest resulting in the formation of a study group and the publication of newsletters, journal articles and a reference book. The "Klussendorfers" as they were known examined every aspect of the cancellation including the variations in the time information.
German comments on the Klussendorfers
Germans are amazed at the degree of interest shown by Canadian philatelists for the Klussendorfs. From the 2008 Klussendorf thread on the German website Philaseitin referring to the Klussendorfers study of the time markings:
Ich weiss, dass es in Kanada mal eine Forschungsgruppe für die Klüssendorf-Stempel gegeben hat, die tatsächlich diese Unterschiede in der Uhrzeit erfasst hat. Das ist nach meiner Meinung absoluter Wahnsinn. Nun gut, in Kanada sind die Winter ja lang.
My attempt at translation:
...a research group for the Klüssendorf stamp actually records these differences in time. This is absolute madness in my opinion. Well, in Canada the winters are so long.
Another poster wrote:
Overall, it's quite amazing how much attention and passion by Canadian collectors for collecting these cancellations. In Germany the interest, that is to the corresponding German cancellations is rather low.
I am also amazed at the efforts put into the study of the Klussendorfs by Canadian postal historians. I applaud them for their dedication.
References
Newman, Geoffrey R., A Quebec Klussendorf Cancellation Report - Part 2, PHSC Journal, # No. 55, p 24, Sept.1988
Scrimgeour, K. Gray. Klussendorf Cancels, PHCS Journal, #62, p.5, June 1990
Maxville Slogan, The Klussendorfer, Newsletter of the BNAPS Canadian Klussendorg Study Group, #16, p.1, Dec. 1991
