We moved into our Bellefonte American Philatelic Center (APC) in May 2004. The 18 buildings on six acres were purchased in March 2002 and are entered in the National Register of Historic Places. The former industrial complex was constructed under the direction of the Pennsylvania Match Company (1899-1922). In 1911 the Pennsylvania Match Company was one of the eight largest match factories in the United States. Peak employment at the facility reached 400 employees in January 1947. Operations as a match factory ceased June 30, 1947. With Aerophilately 2022 coming up, below is a highlight of some of the areas that you will see as you are walking through the APC.
Lobby
Items currently on display include a wood carving of the most famous U.S. stamp – the Inverted Jenny, the earliest known George Washington free frank, and a beautiful photo of the Match Factory from Talleyrand Park.
Morse Building
Off the lobby to the left this building includes two major exhibits. Alphabetilately is composed of an exhibit panel of philatelic material for each letter of the alphabet and was previously displayed at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum for many years. A second exhibit explores the holocaust and its impact by including a stamp for each person who died during this terrible period. Morse Building also includes a large model of an early ship that carried the mails across the Atlantic Ocean.
Library
The entry area to the Library includes a short history of the first ten years of airmail service as Bellefonte was the first stop for planes carrying the mail from New York to Chicago from 1918 to 1927. Included are a number of photos of pilots and an original map provided to the pilot’s to fly what was known as Hell’s Stretch. A memorial to airmail pilots who were killed in service is outside adjacent to the main parking lot.
Also by the entrance to the Library are two early pieces of postal equipment. A Mailometer, the first machine to mechanically seal envelopes and affix stamps to envelopes, which could be credited for the beginning of junk mail and a Rossback perforator.
The American Philatelic Research Library, the largest philatelic library in the English speaking world, includes 2.5 miles of shelves housing more than 23,000 titles, more than 6,000 periodicals, catalogues, exhibits, government documents, and auction catalogues. The oldest document at the Center is a 1729 map of the postal routes of the Eastern seaboard of what would become the United States.
Headsville Post Office
Connected to the Administration area and also accessible from the front of the building is the Gordon and Mary Morison Pavilion housing the Headsville, West Virginia Post Office and General Store which was part of the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History on the Mall in Washington. DC from 1971 through 2007. This building served as the post office and general store for Headsville, West Virginia from 1860 until 1914. Headsville is in the northeastern part of West Virginia not too far from Cumberland, Maryland.
We hope to see you at Aerophilately!