B1301

Historic Preservation

Timberline Lodge - Alpenglow

Collins Cover Announcement 

First COLLINS Postcards

Every so often something happens that leads to an event that becomes a meaningful part of an individual's life experience. For me (and for COLLINS First Day Covers), a phone call from Oregonian Bill White in early 1987 was such a happening. As fruits of that call were harvested, among others I count four new friends, two family "togetherness" adventures, a chance to visit twice a unique 20th Century American architectural masterpiece, and the birth of the first ever COLLINS First Day of Issue postal cards. It is a story worth telling and a tale of warmth among the highest and coldest slopes of Mount Hood. It is another chapter in the ever expanding COLLINS experience of First Day collecting. I am happy to share it with you.

Bill, long associated with support groups of Timberline Lodge, called to inform me that a postcard was to be issued featuring the Lodge. He wanted me to consider doing the official cachet(s) for the issue as sponsored by the "Friends of Timberline" Association. Bill, a cover collector, had previously obtained a few of my earlier covers. At first I declined because I didn't do postcards, but Bill's enthusiasm plus the subject matter changed my mind. Plans started to be formulated.

Timberline Lodge was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 28, 1937 -- exactly 50 years to the day before the First Day of Issue for this postal card. It was built on formidable Mount Hood where the treeline stops. It was built by pick and shovel laborers, stone cutters, plumbers, carpenters, steam fitters, painters, wood carvers, cabinet makers, metal workers, leather workers, seamstresses, weavers, architects and artists. It was built by man in celebration of and tribute to the natural environment of which it is now a part. Timberline is a national treasure that will be enjoyed by our generation and generations to come.

The stamp was to be issued in September. I decided to travel to Timberline in May to decide on the subject matter for my cachets. I wanted a first-hand look in order to do the project right. Now it happened that my oldest son, Tim, had broken his arm and dislocated his shoulder just prior to Little League season and was side-lined. (He came back for the last two games, and his team won the championship. This year [1988] he pitched, played first and batted second. The team again won first place.) Of course, he was totally down-hearted due to his injury, so I decided to take him with me to Timberline.

Due to his cast, our plane tickets were up-graded to "first class" compliments of the airline. Across the aisle were two New York Giants (his favorite NFL team) who were east for try-outs and they signed his cast. A good start. We arrived in Portland and drove out to Mount Hood. It is a beautiful Lodge and, if you ar3 -aver passing that way, plan to spend a night as a guest_ Tim became friendly with the two St. Bernards who roam about and, after careful thought, I decided that these two mascots would be the subject of one of my cachets. Thus, on the "interior" card, Bruno and Heidi pose before a fire in front of the Lodge's main hearth.

The summit of Mount Hood reaches skyward directly behind the Lodge. It belonged on my cover as did Timberline itself, so my "exterior" cachet shows the center portion of the Lodge with the snowy peak behind. It is how it is shown that makes the cachet. A phenomenon caused by the setting sun known as "Alpenglow" bathes the mountain in rose colored light creating various shades of pinks and lavendars. It is in the full glory of Alpenglow that I present the Lodge and Mount Hood on my exterior cachet. (As a side-note, there is a hard bound volume entitled "Timberline Lodge - A Love Story" published by Friends of Timberline and Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co. It is a delightful book to add to your home library and does a splendid job in text and pictures of telling the Timberline story. Photos of Alpenglow (page 16) and the St. Bernards (page 57) are included. I'm not sure of price or availability, but you could inquire at Timberline Lodge, Oregon 97028.)

After deciding on the subjects for my two hand-painted cachets, there was still a little uneasiness in my feeling of completeness. I felt that the beautiful interior polished wood carvings and some exterior hand crafted items should also be represented.

They belonged. And so, I added a third cachet. This one features newell posts showing an owl, an eagle, and a deer. Exterior wood-carvings shown on the cachet include a weathered ram's head and a massive bull's head. Below the cachet proper, I depict the hand-casted metal-knocker which adorns the main front door and also the logo of the "Friends of Timberline" Association. This cachet did not lend itself to hand painting and thus I decided to present it as a printed line-drawing using forest brown ink. The cancel on this cover is the magnificent unofficial pictorial showing the Lodge's 750 pound weathervane which is based on an Indian motif.

The story of our May journey to the Cascades would not be complete without mentioning a visit to Bill's mountain home. It is a lovely spot with warm rooms and picturesque grounds. Salmon rivers rush by within a stone's throw. It was a wonderful visit and here, as well as on a driving tour of surrounding vistas and locations, Tim and I became good friends with our host. Imagine my surprise when in the summer I received the July 10th edition of Portland's "The Oregonian" newspaper and there on page one was Vice President George Bush fishing with Bill's son Tom. And, the caption indicated that George and Barbara were "the fishing and lunch guests of William and Barbara White". Naturally, Tim and I were mildly awed that only a few weeks before we strolled along the same paths and enjoyed refreshments in the same room as now President-elect and Mrs. Bush; but, most of all, that we had the pleasure of visiting and sharing the hospitality of our mutual hosts, Bill and Barbara White.

In September, the Milk Wagon and Marmom Wasp Racing Car were to be issued the same day on the 25th. The Timberline postcards were to be issued on September 28th. Linda decided to accompany me and help out as both projects -- two stamps on one day and several postcards on one day -- would test the limits of time, and both of us would be needed. We took along our pre-schooler Christy.

Indiana went well. Stamps were acquired, affixed and canceled at two great unofficial towns - Farmland (Milk Wagon) and Speedway (Race Car). It was then on to the coast.

It would be possible to write many paragraphs on our wonderful activities in the area. Our drives along the Columbia River

(Washington side) and along the beautiful and sparsely developed Oregon Coast. Our wonderful dinner with the Whites and the Marlowes at the quaint Ivy Bear Restaurant where the food was delicious and plentiful. (Keith and Margaret knew nothing of "cover collecting" and "First Days". They both were swept up with the day's excitement and frenzy and Keith is now a dedicated COLLINS collector -- and a new friend. Unfortunately, a continent hinders our getting together.) Our adventures at the Lodge where Linda and I marveled at the hand-made treasures in various nooks and crannies and where Christy became attached to Bruno and Heidi and frolicked in the snow of Palmer Glacier.

For the exterior "Alpenglow" card, I chose the Timberline Lodge, pictorial unofficial cancel. In addition to this, I added the.. 18-cent Mountain Habitat stamp (the colors are unbelievably coordinated) and added a dual cancel of Mount Hood, Oregon whick; was a pretty good drive. Only a couple of individual collectors, wandered in. Accordingly, to my knowledge, only a very, very few other covers have this great cancel. It is almost non-existent except on COLLINS First Day Covers. So, B1301 has the handpainted Alpenglow cachet with Lodge pictorial unofficial and Mount Hood, Oregon unofficial.

For the interior "Lodge Mascots" card, I chose the Timberline First Day of Issue official cancel. In addition to this, I added the 18-cent Woodland Habitat stamp and added a dual cancel using the Timberline Lodge weathervane pictorial unofficial cancel.

This is B1302 and has the hand-painted St. Bernards in front of fireplace cachet with First Day of Issue official and weathervane pictorial unofficial cancels.

B1303, as described previously, depicts the woodcarvings of bull's head, ram's head, owl, eagle and deer. It is printed in brown ink. This card has the beautiful Timberline Lodge weathervane pictorial that is based on an Indian motif.

All three of these items are the "First" COLLINS postcards. As such, I advise that you add at least one of each to your collection. Numbers are limited, and an early sell-out is possible. Besides limited supply, the facts tnat they are the 'first' COLLINS postcards and that they are a nice topic with an interesting story should make them go quickly. Three very nice collectibles with B1301 and B1302 priced at $6.00 each and $1303 at $4.00.