Great American Stamp Show 2023 (“GASS”) is history, but stamp collectors are already getting ready for the next edition, in Hartford, Connecticut.

Attendance was approximately 2,500 for the 2023 four-day show.

We’ll update this page as we get more details, but here are the basics:

• August 15-18, 2024
• At the Connecticut Convention Center downtown
• Co-sponsored by the American Philatelic Society, American Topical Association, American First Day Cover Society, and the U.S. Postal Service
• Admission will be free. But you’ll have to supply your own caffeine to keep up with all the events!

Meanwhile, the Palmares (exhibit winners) for the three exhibitions at GASS 2023 are here, and the list of literature awards is here. On the left, Nick Lombardi was presented with the Champion of Champions award, for the best philatelic exhibit in the previous 12 months, by APS president Cheryl Ganz. It was the 21st time his exhibit had been in the running for this top award but the first time it had won. It was also the first time an exhibit of post-19th century stamps or covers had won the C of C.

Picture this: There will be at least two pictorial postmarks available for each day of Great American Stamp Show in Cleveland, August 10-13, plus one for the first day of Boston 2026’s latest label and one each for the new stamps the U.S. is issuing.

To handle the expected extra demand for postmarks at the show, U.S. Postal Service is bringing four clerks experienced in hand-canceling covers and cards from Stamp Fulfillment Services in Kansas City.

Postmarks are provided free of charge, provided there is postage meeting at least the first-class rate on the item being canceled.

The Digital Color Postmarks for the two new issues — Life Magnified and Thinking Of You — will not be in use at the show, because they require special equipment that does not leave the SFS facility. However, the USPS is sure to have already-canceled FDCs on hand.

Planning to leave some or all of your FDC collection to the American First Day Cover Society in your will? Have questions about bequests? The AFDCS Bequests Chair, Henry Scheuer, has prepared an easy-to-use analog presentation (we used to call them loose-leaf notebooks) that will be at the AFDCS booth during Great American Stamp Show in Cleveland, August 10-13.

In addition, Scheuer, a financial industry professional, will be at the AFDCS Booth from 4 to 6 p.m. on Saturday to answer questions.

The AFDCS is a 501[c](3) not-for-profit educational organization to which donations are tax-deductible.

The American First Day Cover Society’s seminar and discussion on the U.S. stamp program at Great American Stamp Show will feature three managers from the U.S. Postal Service’s Stamp Services department: Lisa Bobb-Semple, the acting director of the unit; Shawn Quinn, manager of stamp development; and senior stamp development specialist Michael Henry. The program is at 1:00 pm on Thursday, August 10, in the Huntington Convention Center (Room 11), and is open to the public.

William Gicker, the director of Stamp Services, went on administrative leave last month for undisclosed reasons.

There is a main pictorial postmark and an Americover postmark available for each day. These two postmarks may also be used for first day covers of the Life Magnified stamps. These two postmarks may also be used for first day covers of the Thinking Of You stamps.

The AFDCS is seeking members to volunteer for Great American Stamp Show.

The available slots are:

AFDCS BOOTH:
Thursday, Aug, 10, Friday, Aug. 11, and Saturday August 12: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 12-2 p.m., 2-4 p.m.. and 4-6 p.m.
Sunday, August 13: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 12-2p.m., and 2-4 p.m.

COVER PREPARATION: Thursday, August 10 and Friday, August 11: 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Please let Americover volunteer coordinator Ralph Nafziger — nafziger@peak.org — know by August 4 if you can help, and if so, when and for which duty.

The American First Day Cover Society has arranged for two seminars at Great American Stamp Show 2023 featuring top philately-related officials of the U.S. Postal Service. GASS will be held August 10-13 at the Huntington Convention Center in Cleveland, Ohio.

William Gicker (right, in 2019), director of USPS Stamp Services, which chooses and designs stamps and stationery, will speak Thursday, August 10, at 1 p.m. Top managers from USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services —Teri Basinger, its overall manager; Linda Houghtaling, Senior Operations Manager; Betty Brown, manager of stamp production; and Dave Mapel, Cancellation Services supervisor — will have a seminar on Friday, August 11, also at 1 p.m. All stamps are distributed to post offices and sold through SFS, and cancellations are applied to first day covers there.

The U.S. is issuing two sets of stamps during GASS: “Life Magnified” on Thursday and “Thinking Of You” on Friday. In addition, the United Nations, Faroe Islands and Marshall Islands will issue stamps at the show.

The seminars are free and open to the public. Admission to Great American Stamp Show is also free. More details are available here.

The AFDCS is a co-sponsor of the show, along with the American Philatelic Society and American Topical Association. Other AFDCS seminars will be held, along with the society’s annual meetings, and the results of the annual cachet contest will be announced. Further information on the show is also here.

The American First Day Cover Society is a not-for-profit educational organization. It publishes its journal First Days six times a year, as well as handbooks and catalogues, and promotes the collecting and exhibiting of both modern and “classic” issues and cachets.

For more information on the AFDCS, visit www.afdcs.org or write to the AFDCS, PO Box 246, Colonial Beach, VA 22443-0246, or via e-mail at afdcs@afdcs.org.

A few updates on Great American Stamp Show 2023, which will include the American First Day Cover Society’s Americover 2023:

• The show hotel block is 72% booked. A sellout appears likely; don’t dawdle! At $139 a night (show rate), you’re not likely to do much better in downtown Cleveland.
• Function tickets (banquets, etc.) are now on sale on the website.
• A pre-show learning course has been scheduled: “All About Cancellations,” taught by Gary Loew, on Wednesday, August 9th. Click here for more information. The course is limited to 30 participants.

More information on the show: here

The American Philatelic Society Board of Directors has chosen Schaumburg, Illinois, as the site for Great American Stamp Show 2025. The dates are August 14-17, 2025. It is about 30 miles from the Chicago Loop but, more importantly, adjacent to O’Hare Airport.

The other city under consideration was Las Vegas.

The show hotel for the show will be the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel, a Marriott property directly connected to the convention center.

There will be no GASS in 2026: The APS Board approved skipping its own show that year and instead will hold its annual meeting at Boston 2026, the U.S. international show. Those dates are May 23-30, 2026. In 2016, when the U.S. “international” was held in New York City, the APS instead held its annual show, then called “StampShow,” in Portland, Oregon — the other side of the country, hoping to attract collectors who could not make the trip to the East Coast.

The site for Great American Stamp Show 2023 — Cleveland’s Huntington Convention Center — has self-cleaning escalator hand-rails! Do you need another reason to go?

If so, here’s other new information about the show:

There is now information on the APS website: https://stamps.org/great-american-stamp-show

The show hotel is the Westin Cleveland Downtown, at $139/night. Use the link off the website or “AP1” (that’s a one) or ask for the American Philatelic Society room block.

The Westin is two block from the convention center. All guests will get free WiFi. The parking is valet parking at $42 a night. (A 20% discount may be available; APS is checking.)

Everything at the convention center is cashless. Use debit or credit cards.

The convention center has water bottle filling stations.

The meeting rooms are right outside the bourse area. You may not get a chance to use those escalators!

The U.S. Postal Service will have two first-days at the show.

On the website, you can already request meeting times for your organizations and sign up to volunteer.