Full slate of events for Great American Stamp Show 2024

By Molly Goad

The Great American Stamp Show, the annual philatelic convention co-hosted by the American Philatelic Society, American Topical Association and American First Day Cover Society, will take place Aug. 15-18 at the Connecticut Convention Center, Hall AB, 100 Columbus Blvd. in Hartford, Conn.

The four-day show is free and open to the public. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Highlights include a bourse (sales area) of more than 75 dealers from the United States and overseas offering stamps, postal history and supplies; a cachetmakers’ bourse; more than 800 frames of competitive exhibits; and meetings and seminars covering a wide array of topics.

The U.S. Postal Service, a co-sponsor of the show, will have a large booth with current U.S. stamps and other products for sale.

The grand-award winning exhibitors at World Series of Philately shows held during the past year will compete in the Champion of Champions competition.

This list is just a sampling of the events scheduled, with many more activities and presentations planned throughout the show.

Societies

Dozens of societies will have a presence at the show, and most will have a booth in addition to hosting meetings and activities. Attendees will be able to meet fellow society members and join those philatelic groups that cater to their collecting interests.

There will be societies for cats on stamps, gastronomy on stamps, gay and lesbian history on stamps, penguins, women exhibitors, sports and wreck and crash mail.

Different countries and areas will be represented by societies for collectors of Canal Zone, Germany, Haiti, the Philippines, Japan, Pitcairn Islands, the United Nations, the United States, West Indies and more.

Special Exhibits and Events

Among the rarities to be displayed at the show are the U.S. 1918 24¢ Jenny Invert, a 1962 4¢ Dag Hammarskjold invert, and a George Washington free frank.

The Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History will display exhibits of postal carrier’s uniforms and equipment, as well as smaller items relating to the history of the Postal Service and the hobby of philately. Representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be displaying the Federal Duck Stamp Art exhibit.

Ceremonies and Events

Several first-day ceremonies will take place on the show floor stage with other events in the convention center meeting rooms.

Thursday, Aug. 15 first-day ceremonies: USPS, Pinback Buttons (11 a.m.); United Nations Postal Administration, World Heritage: The Republic of Korea, (1 p.m.); and National Duck Show Stamp Collectors Society new release (3 p.m.).

Friday, Aug. 16 first day ceremonies: USPS, Autumn Colors (11 a.m.); Boston 2026, World Expo Label (1 p.m.); and Rattlesnake Island Local Post, Island Aviation through the Decades (3 p.m.).

Friday, Aug. 16 events: APS (host), Women Leaders in the Hobby Panel, (presenters) Cheryl Ganz, Lisa Foster, Dawn Hamman, Kathy Johnson and Melanie Rogers (10 a.m.); APS and Linn’s Stamp News, Postcrossing Meetup, Susanna Mills and Jay Bigalke (12 p.m.); APS, Buying and Selling with APS HipStamp Store, Carol Hoffman and Jays Yoakum (2 p.m.); National Postal Museum, Researching Postal History in Washington DC, Susan Smith (3 p.m.).

Saturday, Aug. 17 events: APS, Digital Preservation Roundtable (12 p.m.); ATA, How to Get Started in Topical Collecting, Jennifer Miller (1 p.m.); book signing, U.S. Zeppelin and Airship Mail Show Flights, Cheryl Ganz (1 p.m.); AFDCS, Designing First Day Covers and Show Covers, Chris Calle (2 p.m.); APS, The Fight against Modern Counterfeits with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Amanda Weisbacker and Haley Elliott (2 p.m.); and Using AI to Grow your Stamp Collection, Mark Swenson (4 p.m.).

Also on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Kewriga Auctions will host the show’s auction.

Sunday, Aug. 18 events: American Air Mail Society, The Devil’s Mail: Terrorism, War, Robberies, Disasters, Hijackings and Insurrections, Steven Berlin (11 a.m.); Ecosystem Mapping for Philately: What we can learn from Entrepreneurship, Tom Droege (1 p.m.);APS, Estate Planning for Philatelists, Ken Martin (2 p.m.); and APS, Dungeons and Dragons live role-playing game sessions (10 a.m.).

Ed Bergen will be on hand to sign his book, Walt Disney’s First Super Star: Mickey Mouse Vols. 1-4, every day at 12 p.m.

For more information about the show, including preregistration, visit the show’s website.

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