10¢ - Red brown, dark red brown
Printing Method: FLAT PLATE
Subject: Map of Louisiana Purchase
Number issued: 4,011,200
Perforations: 12
Watermark: Double line USPS wmk
Scott #: 327
Issued: April 30th, 1904
Used
$3 - $5
No postmark with gum (MH)
$27.50 - $65
Full perfect gum, no postmark
no trace of stamp hinge mark (MNH)
$80 - $140
Two panes of #327, there were four panes of 25 to a sheet of 100
The 10¢ was generally used to pay the combined registry and local postage rate.
The only recorded first day cover with #327, dated April 30th, 1904
It was originally proposed that the series should figures associated with the purchase, which would have included Louis XIV (after whom Louisiana was named) and Napoleon Bonaparte. However it was decided to limit the vignettes to the Americans who had been identified with the Purchase and the Exposition.
This is a copy of the first map made after the purchase. It was the source for the engraving of the vignette
#327 was issued with the following plate #'s
Imprint and number
2105-08
Although officially known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, it was commonly known as the St Louis World's Fair. Millions of dollars had been spent to build the 1,200-acre fairgrounds and its nearly 1,500 buildings—a huge scale that ended up delaying the opening by a year. During the eight months the fair stayed open, nearly 20 million people paid a visit. On display were marvels of technology, agriculture, art, and history, and there were amusement rides and entertainment to be found in a section called “the Pike.” The fair introduced a huge audience to some relatively new inventions such as private automobiles, outdoor electric lighting, and the X-ray machine—as well as foods from across the United States and around the world. The exposition also had a focus on anthropological exhibits. In some cases, organizers brought people from the Philippines, the Arctic, and elsewhere to the fairgrounds as set pieces among re-creations of their home environment or villages. After the fair closed, nearly all of its structures were demolished within a short time, leaving only a few footprints, ponds, and canals in Forest Park in St. Louis
The 'Pike'
The Festival Hall