Overland Mail Baghdad-Haifa Pages
The Overland Mail Baghdad-Haifa is a relatively little known part of the middle east postal history, formed after the 1st world war by two young New Zealanders (Captain Norman Nairn and Driver-Mechanic Mr. Gerald Nairn) who had served with the Royal Army Corps These Pages try to explain primarily the postal history aspect of this company, however, for a good measure also historical facts and background information's like company pamphlets and other miscellaneous items are shown. | ||
| Website Awards (click to enlarge)   |  This picture gives you an idea how adventurous the mail transport and travel through the desert has been. Please click on the image to view it in full size (1.65 MB). That image will open in a new image layer. | Website Awards (click to enlarge)  |
| HELP REQUIRED / REQUESTED (Updated 14 July 2018) | Whereabouts of known items (Updated 14 July 2018) |
| Norman Collins Archive, REQUEST FOR HELP TO IDENTIY ITEMS! (Updated 20 APRIL 2017) |
Whats new!
| March 9, 2023 | Previously unrecorded Route Instruction Handstamp, now listed as HS-N71, on cover from Masdjed-Soleiman, Iran (26 February 1931) to Chicago, Illinois, added. |
| February 25, 2023 | Postal Card from Montevideo/Uruguay (20 April 1929) to Baghdad added. Route Instruction "Via Desierto Haifa-Baghdad" |
| December 30, 2022 | A Imprinted Envelope apparently issued and used by the Deutsche Bank, Konstantinople (Constantinople) has been found. No further details known. The envelope is now listed as IE-N13 |
| November 29, 2022 |
Years after having discovered the first previously unrecorded Route
Instruction Handstamps I listed at that time as
HS-N01 i could find another cover with the Route Instruction
Handstamp, now listed as
HS-N01 (4a & b) because that cover bears two such a handstamp on
front and reverse side of the cover. Postage rates and cover from German Reich after the "Anschluss" (Annexation) of Austria added Postage Rates and cover from the Protectorate Bohemia & Moravia added. |
| June 10, 2022 | A collector friend informed me about a Imprinted Envelope, now listed as IE-N12, used on cover from Teheran / Iran to Beyrouth / Syria. That cover however was sent by Air Mail and the Overland Mail Imprint has been modified by manuscript writing. |
| April 16, 2022 | Three previously unrecorded Route Instruction Handstamps (HS-N68, HS-N69 and HS-N70) have been added. Two out of the three have been reported to my by other collectors for which I am thankful.. |
| March, 20, 2022 | The earliest recorded cover with Route Instructing Handstamp HS-74 (1) added. This is the cover recorded with this date in the Handbook by Norman Collins. |
|
March 19, 2022 |
Cover from Basra to Vaduz / Liechtenstein with Route Instruction
Handstamp type
HS-20 (4) added.
HS-20 was known as used from R.J. Elowe but the sender
of the new cover is A.H. Cohen, but handstamp is more or less identical
as the one used by Elowe.
However, the
handstamp
on that cover
is in red colour. Could it be that this handstamps had been used at the
Post Office in Basra? |
|
March 17, 2022 |
Postage rates and Overland Mail surcharges for
Bahrain had been
modified to reflect the latest state of research. |
|
March 1, 2022 |
A cover with a handstamp almost identical to HS-48 but from a different sender as usually found with HS-48. The cover is dated 7 January 1926, sent from Bagdad to France. The size of the handstamp is almost identical with HS-48, however, the "N" in OVERLAND is broken. Until i find another similar cover i list this handstamp as HS-48 (VAR). |
|
February 5, 2022 |
I could purchase
this Iraq
Postal Card, sent via
the Overland
Mail Baghdad-Haifa. The sender is Meir Heskel Murad and this sender is
recorded having used Route Instruction Handstamp Type HS-07. |
| January 6, 2022 | All details of the Belgium Post that i am aware of related to the Overland Mail and its surcharges and routes have been added. Some questions still remain but it is a beginning. |
| January 4, 2022 |
Finally i am able to confirm that also the
Belgium Post had
surcharges for the Overland Mail implemented. The respective page will
be updated at the earliest. Additional decrees from the Austrian Post pertaining the regulations for mail to be transported by the Overland Mail have been added. |
For older updates, please view the "Revision History" Page!