Boston 2026 World Expo
David Smitham shares his experience representing Mowbrays at Boston in May 2026
Well, it was a large event in a large venue – probably larger than Wembley Stadium in London!
A postcard display with dealers was also held on the first floor of the Massachusetts Convention and Exhibition Centre, so there was much to see – even if one had the time to do so, let alone visiting various trade and postal administration stands in the main hall.
One problem with attending was the distance from NZ and the non-stop flight times (of 17 hours) between Auckland and New York, let alone connections to Boston prior to the exhibition.
Thanks to a massive storm that evening, my flight to Boston was cancelled and I “enjoyed” a 24 hour stopover at JFK airport before finally making it to Boston. So much for my “spare” day in Boston to do a bit of sightseeing and recover from jet lag! As it was, I was wide awake just after 3 am on the Friday before the show.. After giving up on sleep I set to pricing our stock in US $ for sale.
When I arrived at the venue around noon, the trade stands were still being erected. Many of the stand holders had to wait until later in the afternoon before lockable cabinets were delivered, to safeguard stock overnight.
On a few days including the last, rain poured down. This no doubt affected visitor numbers, there were many locals and also collectors who had travelled from Europe, Asia and New Zealand.
Opening day came with many eager collectors and exhibitors, some of whom saw what I had for sale. There were about the same numbers of Australians as New Zealanders present. I made some surprising sales to Kiwis who could have purchased items whilst in NZ!
Over the years I made a few sales to people, knowing what they collected: I have something for you that you need for your collection that you don’t know that you need proved to be the case yet again in Boston. A lady from Blenheim found what she wanted this way. It is much easier for someone to buy something when they can see and discuss it as opposed to reading a catalogue description.
A good number of attractively cancelled NZ Queen Victoria Long Type stamps with neatly applied circular date stamps in the 1880s were used for telegraph purposes, rather than postal purposes. The same situation applied to British high value Queen Victoria stamps. Indeed, SG mentions that the prices for those in their catalogues are for those were used for telegraphic purposes.
At Boston I had two GB 1882 £5 orange stamps for sale, one of which was most likely to have been used for telegraph purposes (photo A). The other was postally used – bearing an oval registered cancel from Threadneedle Street (photo B), where the Bank of England is located, in London.
Photo A Photo B
A Texan came to see what I had in early GB stamps. He was interested in these stamps and several others. I explained the difference between the two types of cancels. He took the lesser stamp and thought further about the Threadneedle Street stamp. Suffice it to say, when paying, he ended up with both £5 stamps.
A number of times I was asked about stamps/covers from various countries that I did not have, apart from some Pan Am flight covers. While some collectors passed on what I had available some sales were made following such requests.
A Canadian collector asked me about Canadian postal history. None were on hand, but I did have many interesting early NZ pre-stamp and FFQ stamped items. After explaining about the imperf/perf stamps and watermarks on our stamps he decided to expand his collecting/exhibiting interest to include the early covers and stamps of NZ. So, a new collector can enjoy a whole new field.
New Zealand’s rarest stamp, the famous 1904 4d Lake Taupo with inverted centre, used from Picton, was on display in the Court of Honour, or so I thought until I visited the wonderful displays there. A colour copy was on the page with the write up about it and a footnote re the stamp being on display in the court devoted to the centenary of Queen Elizabeth II’s birth. . So off I toddled and was surprised to see the Rolls Royce, in which she travelled during her visit to Boston, surrounded by souvenirs and memorabilia. Just behind the right rear wheel were two display boards featuring NZ stamps. One featured imperf proofs for the proposed visit of King George VI and family to NZ, and the other was the 4d Lake Taupo error + normal for comparison.
The new owner of this stamp was present at Boston, and I had the pleasure of dining with him alongside Maurits Kleingeld (a director of Mowbrays)..He visited our stand a few times, once being handcuffed to a briefcase containing a very scarce stamp and being followed by a security guard!
It was good to catch with collectors and dealers to whom I could and did ask questions about a few stamps, and likewise I was asked about some items.