3c Dull Red, Ty. I (11). Huge margins to just in at top right including part of adjoining stamp at left, tied by "San Francisco Cal. 26 May" circular datestamp on buff cover to Nevada Cal. with "Long Tom" illustrated miner's design depicting miners working a sluice box, barely reduced at right

VERY FINE. AN ATTRACTIVE AND VERY SCARCE "LONG TOM" MINER'S ENVELOPE USED WITHIN CALIFORNIA.

According to Ken Kutz in Gold Fever: "The early miners formed syndicates and worked as a group using 'Long Toms' to extract the gold. In essence it was an elongated sluice box with riffles or sacking in the bottom to catch the gold. A continuous current of water washed the gravel through the Long Tom, leaving the contained gold behind." Only a half-dozen examples of this design are reported by Kutz (with and without Noisy Carrier imprint).

Ex Knapp, Wiltsee, Jessup, Haas, Kutz and Jarrett

Image Magnifier / Download

Power Search for Comparables