Interesting philatelic cover honoring the Northwest Territory from the collection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, postmarked at Ipswich, Massachusetts on December 3, 1937, and at Marietta, Ohio, on April 7, 1938, printed with an artistic rendering of an ox caravan along the bottom, with the caption reading: "This letter was carried by ox team caravan, reproducing the trek of the pioneers to the Northwest Territory." Above, the cover is filled out in another hand as "From Hon. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Ipswich, Mass., To Hon. Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States, Washington, D.C." Stamped on both the front and back, "From the Franklin D. Roosevelt Collection, Auctioned Feb., April, 1946 by H. R. Harmer, Inc., N.Y." In fine condition.
President Roosevelt was famed for his stamp collecting hobby and as president significantly influenced the issue of stamps by the US Post Office Department, often becoming personally involved in supervising their creation. He viewed philately as not just a wholesome hobby but a method of educating the masses about the history of the United States and promoting the postal service; thanks in large part to his advocacy, sales through the Post Office Department Philatelic Agency jumped over six hundred percent during his administration. Given FDR's close association with stamp collecting, this is a particularly desirable personally-owned piece.
