Townsville Instructional Markings and Parcel Posts

Townsville post office, 72 km north west of Ayr, opened on 1 January 1866

Instructional Markings

• Electric Telegraph Office Oval type 1 (no crown) in violet rated 5R
• Electric Telegraph Office Oval type 2 (with crown) rated 5R
• Late Fee (1894) rated 5R
• Loose Ship Letter Type 1 (17 October 1881 - 27 July 1884) rated 4R - $50, $125 on cover
• Loose Ship Letter Type 2 (1894 - 26 November 1896) rated 5R - $60
• Loose Ship Letter Type 3 (1898) rated 3R - $35
• Loose Ship Letter Type 4 (April 1909 - August 1910) rated 5R - $60, $100 on cover
• Loose Ship Letter Type 5 (26 October 1899 - October 1907) rated 4R - $40, $70 on cover
• Not Known by Letter Carriers handstamp (1906) rated 5R
• Paid (11 January 1904 - May 1911) rated 5R
• Parcel Post date stamp (12 October 1907 - 6 August 1913) rated 5R 
• Received Torn handstamp (1902 - 1906) rated 5R
• Unclaimed handstamp (1906 - 1907) rated 5R

Date Stamps

• Datestamp type 1b (22 April 1867 - 19 November 1874) rated 3R
• Datestamp type 3a - Codes None, 1, 2 (16 August 1878 - 21 March 1896) rated 4R
• Datestamp type 3b - Codes 1, 2, 3, 4 (10 October 1877 - 18 September 1888) rated 4R
• Datestamp type 3c - No Code (3 October 1883 - 4 November 1899) rated 2R 
• Datestamp type 3c - Codes a, b, c (18 June 1874 - 16 October 1877) rated 3R - 5R
• Datestamp type 3c - Codes A, B, C, E, F (9 July 1883 - 18 March 1898) rated 4R - 5R
• Datestamp type 3c - Codes 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 (27 January 1882 - 21 November 1904) rated 4R - 5R
• Datestamp type 4at (18 June 1900 - 10 March 1901) rated 5R
• Datestamp type 4b (30 September 1902 - 9 October 1906) rated 4R
• Datestamp type 5a (21 January 1905 - 13 July 1914) rated Common
• Datestamp type 6t (3 August 1912 - 20 February 1913) rated 4R
• Machine cancellation type 5 (3 December 1912) rated 5R
• Machine cancellation type 6 (11 March 1912 - 10 March 1913) rated 4R

Townsville numeral 59 HERE. Townsville duplex numeral 59 HERE. Townsville numeral 444 HERE. Townsville duplex numeral 528 HERE. Townsville duplex numeral 570 HERE. Townsville registered HERE. Townsville date stamps HERE

Townsville Loose Ship Letter handstamps: L-R types 2, 3, 4

Electric Telegraph Office Oval type 1 in violet - no Crown

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 1 in violet. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus auction no 240 lot no 505

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 1 in violet. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus auction no 234 lot no 737

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 1 in violet. Rated 5R. Seen in the collection of Tony Curtis

Electric Telegraph Office Oval type 2 - with Crown

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 2. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus auction no 240 lot no 505

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 2. Rated 5R. Seen in the collection of Tony Curtis

Townsville Electric Telegraph Office oval type 2. Rated 5R. Seen in the collection of Tony Curtis

Late Fee

1894

Townsville Late Fee dated 7 March 1894. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus auction no 247 lot no 1136

Loose Ship Letter Type 1

1881

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1 dated 17 October 1881. Rated 4R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

1882

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1 dated 16 May 1882. Rated 4R. Seen in Abacus auction no 247 lot no 1134

1884

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1 dated 27 July 1884. Rated 4R. Seen in Abacus auction no 257 lot no 764

Unknown year

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1. Rated 4R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1. Rated 4R. Seen on Ebay

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1. Rated 4R. Seen on Ebay

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1. Rated 4R. Seen in the collection of Carl Burnett

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 1. Rated 4R. Seen in the collection of David Hopper

Loose Ship Letter Type 2

1896

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2 dated 26 November 1896. Rated 5R

Unknown year

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2. Rated 5R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2. Rated 5R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2. Rated 5R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2. Rated 5R. Seen in the collection of Carl Burnett

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 2. Rated 5R. Seen in the collection of Carl Burnett

Loose Ship Letter Type 3

1898

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 3 dated 1898. Rated 3R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Unknown year

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 3. Rated 3R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 3. Rated 3R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 3. Rated 3R

Loose Ship Letter Type 4

1909

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4 dated April 1909. Rated 5R. Seen on Ebay

1910

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4 dated August 1910. Rated 5R. Seen in Cavendish auctions

Unknown date

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R. Seen on Ebay

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R. Seen in a private collection

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R. Seen on Ebay

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 4. Rated 5R

Loose Ship Letter Type 5

1899

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 26 October 1899. Rated 4R. Seen on Ebay

1900

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 25 June 1900. Rated 4R. Seen in Abacus auction no 247 lot no 1137

1901

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 30 August 1901. Rated 4R

1903

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 12 September 1903. Rated 4R. Seen in Cavendish auctions

1904

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 9 July 1904. Rated 4R. Seen on Ebay

1905

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 14 August 1905. Rated 4R. Seen in Abacus auction no 247 lot no 1138

1907

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated October 1907. Rated 4R. Seen on Ebay

Unknown year

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated. Rated 4R. Seen in Cavendish auctions

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5. Rated 4R. Seen in Premier Postal auction no 137

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5. Rated 4R. Seen in Abacus auction no 257 lot no 366

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5. Dated 19 August. Rated 4R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Townsville Loose Ship Letter type 5 dated 13 August. Rated 4R

Not Known by Letter Carriers

1906

Townsville Not Known by Letter Carriers instructional marking dated September 1906. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus online auction no 4 lot no 1263

Paid

Townsville Paid (Campbell type 7) dated 11 January 1904. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

1911

Townsville Paid (Campbell type 7) dated May 1911. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Parcel Post

1907

Townsville Parcel Post dated 12 October 1907. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

1909

Townsville Parcel Post dated 4 December 1909. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

1912

Townsville Parcel Post dated 25 November 1912. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

1913

Townsville Parcel Post dated 8 February 1913. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus auction no 245 lot no 455

Townsville Parcel Post dated 6 August 1913. Rated 5R. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Received Torn

1902

Townsville Received Torn instructional marking dated 11 March 1902. Rated 5R. Seen in Spink auction no 12043 lot no 1362. Ex Griffiths 

1906

Townsville Received Torn instructional marking  dated 24 September 1906. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus online auction no 4 lot no 1263

Unclaimed

1906

Townsville Unclaimed dated 24 September 1906. Rated 5R. Seen in Abacus online auction no 4 lot no 1263

1907

Townsville Unclaimed dated 8 July 1907. Rated 5R. Seen in a private collection