STATE DUCK INDEX    FEDERAL INDEX    HOME

Temporary stamps are not new to state duck stamp collectors. In 1986, New Hampshire issued a facsimile stamp when the regular hunter stamps were not available. West Virginia did something similar in 1988 when their stamps were not ready in time for the hunting season. Perhaps the best known of the temporary stamps is the 1989 Oregon temporary stamp. When the State was informed that the hunting stamps would not be ready on time, 15,000 "temporary" stamps were printed. These are the size of an Avery address label and had black serial numbers. The stock of stamps was running low and the pictorial stamps were still not ready so another 10,000 temporary stamps were ordered. The second printing arrived with red serial numbers, creating two varieties. Due to the length of time these temporary stamps were on sale many were sold to the collecting public. By the time the State started to receive orders most of the first printing was already sold out. I estimate that less than 750 mint Oregon temporary stamps exist with black serial numbers and between 2000 and 2500 of the red serial number varieties are in dealer stocks or collections.

IDAHO TEMPORARY STAMP

In 1991, the state of Idaho had printer problems, which delayed the delivery of their duck and upland bird stamps. Although collectors could wait an extra month or two to put a stamp in their collections, hunters could not. Thus, temporary waterfowl hunting stamps were printed to sell to hunters. 999 booklets of 10 temporary duck stamps were ordered (serial numbers 20,011-30,000). Collector sheet stamps had the serial numbers of 1-20,010 (a total of 667 sheets of 30). According to Steve Beig from the Department of Fish & Game in Boise, 1290 temporary stamps were destroyed at the end of the season meaning no more than 8700 stamps were sold to hunters. The State confirms that very few of these stamps were sold to collectors. The fact that these stamps have been in existence for almost three years without surfacing attests to their scarcity.

In 1991, I purchased a small quantity of these stamps for my stock intending to purchase more of them prior to destruction. I thought that, like the Oregon temporary stamps of 1989, these stamps would be purchased in large quantities by other dealers and collectors and would eventually sell for about double face value. I was wrong. By the time I contacted the State (about a month before the destruction date), the temporary stamps were long gone. After many phone calls, I was able to purchase a few partial books that were from early dealer returns.

Since their destruction on October 31, 1992, I have been looking for anyone who may have purchased quantities (large or small) of the temporary duck or upland game stamps. I found only three collectors who purchased one or two of these stamps and a collector who had one on a license. An Idaho collector wrote to me in 1994 and said he could have purchased as many of these stamps as he wanted during the season, but didn't buy any because they were so plain.

After destruction of the temporary stamps, I made two separate trips to the fish and game department in Boise in order to gather information on them. This led to nothing but frustration. Record keeping of these stamps by the state was poor. At one time, I was told that only 16 stamps were sold to collectors (one at a time), but when I pointed out that I had purchased more than that myself, they couldn't provide me with any more information. Since they didn't have a pretty picture on them, there weren't any stamps located with the rest of the stock reserved for collectors. Vendors did not return their excess stamps until well after the season was over. This explains why returned stamps were destroyed instead of sold.

I estimate less than 300 of the 1991 Idaho Temporary stamps exist in mint condition. They are selling between $125 and $135 at present. I recommend picking one up while the price is still reasonable.