Details For Cover ID# 29643

[On the Mexican Gold Trail to California] Crittenden correspondence folded letter
with integral address leaf datelined at “Chihuahua, July 17th 1849” where it entered the
Mexican mails and endorsed “Via New Orleans,” arrived in Vera Cruz with their backstamp
and handed over to the British receiving their “Vera-Cruz/Au 16, 1849” backstamp,
crowned circle “Paid at Vera-Cruz” postmark and manuscript “1/-” rate and carried
by Royal Mail Steamship Packet Trent to Mobile where it entered the U.S. mails with
red “Mobile, Ala./Aug 21” datestamp, matching “SHIP” in circle and “10” rate handstamps,
Crittenden correspondence cover addressed to Brazoria, Texas, fresh and
extremely fine; illustrated in Letters of Gold by Jesse L. Coburn on page 12.
Earliest recorded use of this SHIP marking and only recorded use in red ink