posted 12-04-2021 08:22 AM               

Second is the postmark date. It appears that the wrong was initially used and then corrected. Has anyone seen a similar example?

posted 12-04-2021 10:13 PM               

Concerning the wrong dated SL-4 postcard, Boy does that bring back a memory! When I was just out of high school in February 1974, I had acquired for myself earlier a few SL-4 mission emblem covers and photos (a few were crew signed) and wanted to get them cancelled at both the Cape Canaveral and Patrick AFB post offices on the splashdown date of the final manned Skylab flight.

My first stop on Feb. 8, 1974 around 1 p.m. was at the Cape post office after about a 15-minute drive from my parents home on Merritt Island. I only had about 50 or so covers with me, along with a few photos and other literature, and quickly had them postmarked by the clerk on duty. That same clerk was all "business like" when we first met in 1973, but as the years went by with many of my personal Cape P.O. visits in having covers cancelled and processed, we became friends as she had always been so kind and patient to me.

Next stop, another 15-minute or-so drive, would be Patrick AFB using my Air Force dependent ID-card for gate entrance since my Dad was a retired Air Force master sergeant since 1968. Once inside the postal station there on base, the postal clerk took my second batch of envelope covers and other items and carefully had them hand cancelled for me.

Once I had gotten all of them back, I noticed a terrible blunder had occurred. The clerk at Patrick had forgotten to change the date stamper to another year since the splashdown event was in early 1974 and not in '73 of which most all of the major Skylab events had occurred in.

When I pointed out the error to him, he said "Oh my gosh, I am so sorry," and took my covers back. Next he got out a ball-point pen and proceeded to cross out the "3" of the year slug and simply write a "4" next to it. Fortunately, at that early time in my space cover servicing career, only a few covers had been effected since it was PAFB and not CC (about 35 or so). Before my arrival at the base, though, I had no idea of how many other splashdown wrong-dated covers had been processed as I never did ask that question before leaving.

True story and below is one of my "on site over-the-counter" SL-4 emblem crew signed covers with a "corrected" added "4." It also looks like my "4" numbering style is different than the corrected topic-posted "write-in" USS New Orleans aircraft carrier postcard which may indicate that more than one postal clerk had to change them over. Can't believe it has been nearly 50 years when I first experienced a major space cover postal mishap.

posted 12-05-2021 03:36 PM               

Through an error the postmark of February 8, 1973 was applied instead of the proper year 1974. The hand cancel used for "covers" is not used daily and the year was not changed through an error.

posted 12-06-2021 02:59 AM               

I have this postcard postmarked Patrick AFB, FL on Feb 8, 1974 (date not corrected). It seems to be not the same hand device that shown here. Mine bears AM with dots.