Dec. 31st, 1963 - The Day The "G" Stamp Died
The Guideline, Journal of the VIPS, May 1988, p. 5
by Lester Small
On June 29th, 1939, a number of Canada's stamp issues were centrally perforated with the initials O H M S, the vertical leg of each letter consisting of five holes.
These were later replaced by a variety consisting of four holes. In 1949 - 50, stamps appeared overprinted O.H.M.S.in black. Finally, in September 1950, Canada's bi-lingual policy caused these issues to be overprinted "G".
Of course, we all know what these stamps were used for - they were specially prepared for use on Government mail, and overprinted (or perforated) O.H.M.S. (for "On His Majesty's Service") and "G" (for "Government") so as to discourage pilferage or theft.
Old age overtakes everything, and in December 1963, these official overprints expired. In the interim period, before a common policy was determined, different government offices ran amok, and the variety of replacements creates a veritable topical subject in itself, with many sizes, styles, and configurations of type face, wording, and layout. These imprints occurred in the upper right corner of envelopes containing mail from many different government offices, and a few examples follow:
