WILLIAM CARLOS STONE (1859-1939)

Stone was a specialist in Chinese stamps, and United States revenue stamps and amassed an extensive philatelic literature library, now in the Postal History Museum, Washington, D.C. He assisted William Reynolds Ricketts in the preparation the index of philatelic literature. He was a specialist in Greek, Roman and U. S. Coins, and collected Napoleon medals, and served as the Librarian and Vice-President of the American Numismatic Association.

William Carlos Stone (1859-1939), was born on October 8, 1859 at Plymouth, Massachusetts, son of Admiral Samuel Paschal Stone (1820-1902), Assistant Superintendent of Schools, and Elizabeth M. Hutchinson Stone (1835-1899), both natives of New Hampshire. His great-grandfather Urial Stone was a soldier in the American Revolution in Corporal Bedel's New Hampshire Regiment. While still a youth at Plymouth he was given a gift of foreign postage stamps from Hong Kong and East India from the wife of a sea captain which sparked his fascination with collecting postage stamps. He began buying collectible postage stamps while a youth of twelve years at Plymouth in 1871. The first stamp he purchased was a 15c 1869 U. S. stamp for which he paid one cent to a schoolmate. He thought it a waste of money at the time. By 1893 he amassed a collection of approximately 14,000 postage stamps. His specialty in coin collecting is war medals and decorations including three different crosses of the Legion of Honor, the German Iron Cross of 1813, the Russian Cross of St. George, the French Order of Saint Esprit, the Bourbon Order of the Lily, etc.

In 1873, his family moved to Springfield, Massachusetts where he remained his remaining years. He graduated Springfield public high school in 1878. From 1879-1883 he assisted his father as superintendent of schools working in his office.

In 1883 he worked as an assistant librarian in the Springfield Public Library, where he remained until 1938.

Stone was a founding member of the American Philatelic Association, established on September 14, 1886 in New York City. He was appointed Librarian in 1887, but was transferred to the Literary Board, and since 1890 as Chairman. The Association was later renamed the American Philatelic Society. Stone served as President 1905-1907 succeeding Hiram Edmund Deats. He was also editor of the American Philatelist beginning in 1893. He also served on the Hand-Book Committee of the APA (now APS). He was also a member of the Post Card Society, and the I.P.V. of Dresden.

He worked for 55 years as assistant librarian at the Springfield, Massachusetts Public Library. He also served as the A.N.A. Librarian from 1892-1898.

He joined the American Numismatic Association in 1892 and is A.N.A. Member No. 92. He served as Vice-President of the A.N.A.

On June 28, 1893, he married Annie Ripley Osgood of Fryeburg, Maine, at Springfield, Massachusetts. They had two daughters Helen (1894-), and Emily (1896-).

On May 9, 1912, he was a founding charter member and the first president of the Springfield Coin Club.

Lyman Haynes Low auctioned part of his coin collection on May 22, 1918, originally scheduled April 20, 1918.

He died at his home in Springfield, Massachusetts, on February 23, 1939.

His philatelic library was sold posthumously in April 1941 and purchased by George Townsend Turner (1906-1979). Turner eventually donated it to the Smithsonian Institute's Postal History Museum.

In 1940, the APS established the William Carlos Stone Memorial Award for exhibitors at annual convention. In 1947, he was inducted in the American Philatelic Society Hall of Fame.

To read the complete article, see:
STONE, WILLIAM CARLOS (https://sites.google.com/a/numismaticmall.com/www/numismaticmall-com/stone-william-carlos)

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web