According to Mr. Donald Gibbons, a well known stamp dealer on the Isles, the Bermuda Stamp Club had it’s origins in 1937 when six collectors, including himself, started to meet monthly in the Tower Building in Hamilton for a general discussion about stamps. This continued until early 1940, when war conditions stopped the monthly gatherings.

With the arrival of many censors and censorettes during World War II, a branch of the Overseas League was established in 1942, and members with an interest in stamp collecting soon joined with local collectors to form a new Club. Between forty and fifty members now met regularly at the Overseas League. All of this came to an end when the Imperial Censorship Detachment left Bermuda towards the end of the war.

It was not until February 1957 that the Bermuda Stamp Club was re-established. Officers were appointed and monthly meetings were held at the Bank of Bermuda, courtesy of Sir Henry Tucker. Following the demolition of the original Bank of Bermuda building in the early 1960’s meetings were held at the Lady Asser Hut of the Bermuda Girl Guide Association. At that point, 15 to 20 members attended most meetings; there was usually a talk by one member, including a small exhibit of his or her material, as well as some swapping of stamps in the back of the room. A typical agenda for the monthly meetings read as follows:

Next Meeting – 7.30p.m. at the Lady Asser Hut

7:30 to 8:00 – Swapping, lively chat, scandalous gossip, rumourmongering as usual

8:00 – Any business – Your President in the hot seat, doing his chairman thing

8:01 (with any luck) 1.) Mr. Geoff Osborn will talk on some aspect at present not arranged.

2.) Your secretary will give a brief talk on ‘Cut Squares’ issued in Great Britain

Later – The Auction: please bring along those valuable collections of stamps instead of throwing them in the trashcan

I remember doing a talk on stamp printing methods and another on the development of postal systems in Central Europe, as well as preparing small exhibits for show-and-tell sessions at the Club. Meetings were usually good fun and a learning experience for all of us.

Starting in 1969 an annual dinner was held at the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club and Bermuda stamp collecting went from strength to strength. Some members visited overseas philatelic exhibitions, and Sir Henry Tucker exhibited with much success in London in 1970.

On 25 November 1972 the first public ‘Philatelic Exhibition’ was held at the Masonic Hall on Reid Street in Hamilton. There were a total of 28 one-frame exhibits from club members organized in six groups – Bermuda pre-1900; Bermuda post-1900; British Empire; Foreign; Postal History and Thematics. Additionally, there were six invited exhibits by Sir Henry Tucker, Robert P. Odenweller, Geoff Osborn, Larry Swain, and the Bermuda General Post Office. The exhibits were judged by Robert P. Odenweller who lived in Bermuda at the time and later became an international judge.

The commemorative cover shown below was signed by Sir Richard Sharples, Governor of Bermuda, who officially opened the exhibition (sadly Sir Richard was assassinated in Bermuda less than four months later); and the following members of the Bermuda Stamp Club: Charles W. Post, President; Alan Maccoy; Vice President; John Swift, Secretary; Dick Perreault, Show Chairman; Donald Gibbons, Treasurer, and Geoff Osborn, Advisor to the Show Committee.

The second Philatelic Exhibition was held on 1 December 1973, again at the Masonic Hall. There were now 40 frames of exhibits in addition to invited exhibits by Robert P. Odenweller and Dr. Jack Arnell. For the first time an overseas exhibitor, Dr. Kil Bump, was included, and Robson Lowe Bermuda Ltd. and Stephen Braham, a dealer from the U.K., donated the ‘Best in Show’ and ‘Best Postal History’ awards respectively.

This 1973 exhibition cover was signed by Sir Edwin Leather, Governor of Bermuda, who officially opened the exhibition; Charles W. Post, President; Alan Maccoy; Vice President; Jack Townsend, Secretary; Dick Perreault, Show Chairman and Club Treasurer; Geoff Osborn, Show Committee member, Robert P. Odenweller, Judge, and Larry Swain, donor of the ‘Best British Commonwealth’ award and owner of the Bermuda Stamp and Coin Company.

One year later, the exhibition was for the first time called ‘Bermupex’ and held on 30 November 1974, again at the Masonic Hall. There were again 40 frames, including a Court of Honor with exhibits by Dick Perreault, Robert P. Odenweller, Geoff Osborn and Charles W. Post. In addition to Robert P. Odenweller, Col. James T. DeVoss of the American Philatelic Society judged the exhibits.

This 1974 exhibition cover was signed by E. Graham Gibbons, O.B.E., Mayor of Hamilton, who officially opened the exhibition; Alan Maccoy, President; Godfrey Pell, Secretary/Treasurer; Show Committee members Geoff Osborn and Dick Perreault; Show Committee Chairman Charles W. Post; and Judges Col. James T. DeVoss and Robert P. Odenweller.

During 1974 two club members – Dick Perreault and Charles W. Post – exhibited at Balpex [Baltimore, Maryland], returning with several trophies. With the help of Kal Illyefalvi, Chairman of Balpex, they also returned with lots of ideas on how to organize an international philatelic exhibition. Planning to stage such an exhibition began almost immediately. The Bermuda Stamp Club now became the Bermuda Philatelic Society, and the Show Committee was enlarged to seven and included Charles W. Post as President, and Alan Maccoy, Dick Perreault, Godfrey Pell, Geoff Osborn, Jack Arnell and myself. One hundred fifty two 16-page frames had to be constructed, and numerous overseas collectors and dealers were contacted and encouraged to attend ‘Bermupex 75’.

Everything came to fruition in November 1975, when ‘Bermupex 75’ was held from November 29^th to the 30^th at the Southampton Princess Hotel. The 152 frames were filled with 35 exhibits, including those from Sir Henry Tucker, Geoff Osborn, Dick Perreault, Colin Benbow, Jack Arnell, Malcolm Gosling, Marcel Deslandes, Alan Maccoy, Godfrey Pell and myself. Overseas exhibitors included Morris Ludington, Allan Steinhart, Horace Harrison, Peter DuPuy, Philip Ireland, Jack Townsend, Burton Sellers, Kil Bump, King Horner and many others.

The Judges of ‘Bermupex 75’ were Emerson A. Clark, President of the A.P.S.; Col. James T. DeVoss of the A.P.S.; Kalman V. Illyefalvi, Chairman of Balpex; and Stephen W. Braham from the U.K., and the awards were presented by His Excellency Sir Edwin Leather at a memorable awards banquet at the Southampton Princess Hotel.

‘Bermupex 75’ for the first time had a Dealer’s Bourse which included James Bendon, Stephen W. Braham Ltd. and Stanley Gibbons Ltd. from the U.K.; Andrew Levitt, Inc. from the U.S.; as well as Robson Lowe Bermuda Ltd., The Bermuda Coin & Stamp Company and The City Coin & Stamp Gallery of Bermuda. The Bermuda Post Office set up their own facility at ‘Bermupex 75’ and provided an official cancellation.

An important part of the success of ‘Bermupex 75’ was the Auction held by Robson Lowe International Ltd. The morning session included 518 lots and the afternoon session a further 255 lots. Bidding was extremely spirited and the final realization of approximately $200,000.

The 1975 exhibition cover shown here was signed by Committee members Alan Maccoy, Dick Perreault, Charles W. Post and Godfrey Pell. It shows the official cancellation provided by the Bermuda Post Office.

Following the success of the 1975 exhibition and auction, planning started almost immediately for ‘Bermupex 76’. Two members left the show committee; Heidi Augustinovic joined as Secretary and Jack Arnell took over as Chairman.

‘Bermupex 76’ was held on December 4^th and 5^th 1976 - again at the Southampton Princess Hotel. Thirty one exhibitors shared 144 frames, and the Bermuda Post Office again set up a postal facility and provided an official cancellation. The Dealer’s Bourse increased to 12 and included Stephen W. Braham Ltd., Proud-Bailey Co. Ltd., James Bendon, Muscott’s, Trevor Davis, Col. A. Murray and Bridger & Kay Ltd. From the U.K.; Andrew Levitt, Inc. and Norman R. Scrivener from the US; as well as Robson Lowe Bermuda Ltd., The Bermuda Coin & Stamp Company and The City Coin & Stamp Gallery of Bermuda.

The ‘Bermupex 76’ exhibition was opened by Sir Henry Tucker; judged by Milton Mitchell and Mary Ann Owens of the US, and Ted Proud from the UK; and the awards were presented by The Hon. J. David Gibbons, Bermuda’s Minister of Finance. Robson Lowe International Ltd. again held an auction – this time consisting of 1,104 lots, which realized over $400,000.

This 1976 exhibition cover was signed by Sir Henry Tucker; Jack Arnell, Chairman; Milton Mitchell, Head Judge; and Committee members Dick Perreault, Heidi Augustinovic, Alan Maccoy, Geoff Osborn and myself.

1977 was a time of serious trouble in Bermuda, with first the trial and then the hanging of the two perpetrators of several politically-motivated murders, including that of Sir Richard Sharples, the Governor of Bermuda. The Bermupex Committee was naturally concerned that exhibitors, judges, dealers and visitors would withdraw their support for another ‘Bermupex’, however, a few telephone calls to our main supporters soon convinced us otherwise. As we could not secure the Southampton Princess Hotel which was closed due to fire damage, the next exhibition was moved to the Castle Harbour Hotel and held on January 28^th and 29^th 1978.

The ‘Bermupex 78’ Committee remained unchanged, however, two overseas Commissioners were retained – Dr. Roberto M. Rosende from the U.S., and William H. P. Maresh from Canada. Thirty three exhibitors took part in the exhibition, which was judged by Col. James T. DeVoss of the APS; William H. P. Maresh from Canada; and Stephen W. Braham and Ted Proud from the U.K. ‘Bermupex 78’ was opened by Sir Peter Ramsbotham, Governor of Bermuda.

The Bourse consisted of seven dealers from the UK – Stephen W. Braham Ltd., Proud-Bailey Co. Ltd., James Bendon, Muscott’s, Trevor Davis, Gainsborough Stamps and Robson Lowe Ltd. – as well as The Bermuda Coin & Stamp Co. Ltd. The Bermuda Post Office again set up a postal facility and provided a special cancellation. Robson Lowe International Ltd. again conducted an auction, which consisted of 1,784 lots.

The 1978 exhibition cover shown here was signed by Sir Peter Ramsbotham, James T. DeVoss, Committee members Jack Arnell, Dick Perreault, Heidi Augustinovic, myself, Geoff Osborn and Alan Maccoy, as well as Roberto Rosende, Steve Braham, William Maresh and Sidney Corbett, Postmaster General of Bermuda.

Due to major renovations during the winter of 1978/1979, the Castle Harbour Hotel could not be secured for the next exhibition – ‘Bermupex 79’ – which was held on 17^th and 18^th February 1979 at the Holiday Inn Hotel in St. George’s Parish. The Show Committee remained the same, and in addition to the two Commissioners from ‘Bermupex 78’, we also secured Raul Gandara from Puerto Rico. The number of frames was increase to 176 to accommodate 37 exhibits which were judged by F. Burton Sellers from the US, William H. P. Maresh from Canada and Ted Proud from the UK. The Worshipful Norman R. Roberts, Mayor of St. George’s, opened ‘Bermupex 79’. As usual the Bermuda Post Office set up a postal facility and provided an official cancellation for the mail.

The Dealer’s Bourse increased to 16 and included Stephen Walter, Robson Lowe Ltd., Trevor Davis, Col. A. Murray, Muscott’s, Ritchie Bodily, J. M. Stamp & Coins Ltd. and Proud-Bailey Co. Ltd. from the UK; the Battle Green Stamp & Coin Shop, A. Gatherin’, Cape Cod Stamp Company, Victoria Stamp Company, Norman R. Scrivener, Harmers of New York Inc., and Worldwide Stamps, Inc. of the US; as well as The Bermuda Coin & Stamp Company Co. Ltd. Robson Lowe International Ltd. again staged a successful auction in conjunction with ‘Bermupex 79’.

This 1979 exhibition cover was signed by Norman P. Roberts, Mayor of St. George’s; Committee members Jack Arnell, Dick Perreault, Alan Maccoy, Heidi Augustinovic, myself and Geoff Osborn; Judges Ted Proud, F. Burton Sellers and William H. P. Maresh, as well as Bermuda’s Postmaster General Sidney Corbett.

The last weekend in November was chosen as the date for the first Bermupex exhibition in 1975 and it proved to be too close to the American Thanksgiving holiday, causing conflict with the hotel. The second exhibition was scheduled for the first weekend in December, and that proved to be too close to Christmas for several people. It was then decided to try the last weekend in January, missing calendar year 1977. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate and it was therefore decided to move the date to February for the 1978 exhibition. Again the weather was unkind and our overseas friends pleaded that the show be held when the weather was likely to be better. So it turned out that the last Bermupex was again scheduled for November, the month we started our international exhibitions five years earlier.

‘Bermupex 80’ was held on November 15^th and 16^th 1980, again at the Castle Harbour Hotel. The Show Committee remained unchanged – Jack Arnell, Chairman; Heidi Augustinovic, Secretary, and Dick Perreault, Geoff Osborn, Alan Maccoy and myself – the Commissioners were William H. P. Maresh from Canada and Dr. Roberto M. Rosende from the US; and the Judges were Dr. Roberto M. Rosende and Kalman V. Illyefalvi from the US, Col. Charles P. DeVolpi from Canada, and Trevor Davis from the UK.

Because of space restrictions, the number of frames was limited to 132, which accommodated 28 exhibits, including overseas exhibits from Morris Ludington, Robert H. Pratt, Brad Arch, J. King Horner, Dr. Francisco Pereda, Dr. Gordon H. Torrey, Robert W. Dickgiesser, Dr. D. A. Selby, P.A. Robertson, Dr. Kil Bump, George M. Speirs, Ted Nixon and Charles J. Reiling. Additionally, the Bermuda General Post Office set up an exhibit of ‘Artwork of Recent Stamp Issues’. ‘Bermupex 80’ was opened by The Hon. J. David Gibbons, Premier of Bermuda, and included a lecture on the use of ultraviolet light in philately by Dr. Myles Glazer.

Due to the economic difficulties at that time, the Dealer’s Bourse was limited to ten, including Stephen Walter, Robson Lowe, Trevor Davis, Muscott’s and Gainsborough Stamps from the UK; Battle Green Stamp & Coin Shop, A. Gatherin’, Harmers of New York Inc and Victoria Stamps Company from the US; and Larry Swain’s Bermuda Coin & Stamp Co. Ltd. The Bermuda Post Office again set up a postal facility and provided an official cancellation. However, Robson Lowe International Ltd. was unable to hold the usual auction and instead set up their own exhibits, which were open to the public for two days before the opening of ‘Bermupex 80’.

The 1980 exhibition cover shown here was signed by The Hon. J. David Gibbons, Premier of Bermuda; Committee members Jack Arnell, Dick Perreault, Heidi Augustinovic, Alan Maccoy, myself and Geoff Osborn; William H. P. Maresh, Dr. Roberto M. Rosende, Kal Illyefalvi, Col. Charles P. DeVolpi, Robson Lowe and Bermuda’s new Postmaster General, Edward McBeath.

For a number of reasons, including the economic conditions of the time; the fact that some Committee members could no longer commit the time it took to organize the exhibitions; problems with our exhibition frames and glass, which had deteriorated; but mainly exhaustion, it was decided that we could not go on staging such demanding exhibitions. Unfortunately efforts to at least revive the old Bermuda Stamp Club also failed. Eventually our exhibition frames were dumped, the bank account closed, and the remaining assets given to a local charity – a sad ending to an exiting time in which Bermuda philately had the worldwide ‘stamp of approval’ from collectors, judges and dealers.