Hobby sticks with collector

Gailen McMullen of Beatrice can trace his interest in stamps back more than 45 years - to a pastor at his church who collected stamps.

“I got started back in 1960,” McMullen said.

It's a hobby that has stayed with him to this day.

“I collect plate blocks,” he said. “They just always made sense to me.”

A plate block is a block of stamps with a margin attached that has the number used in printing that sheet of stamps.

McMullen said some collectors try to get full sets, a plate number is printed in the margin near all four corners of a sheet of stamps, others just collect a certain corner.

“It's difficult to do that,” he said, because it can be a challenge to find all four corners of a sheet.

About a year ago, looking to downsize his collection by selling to other collectors, McMullen said he joined the Lincoln Stamp Club.

The club will be holding its annual LINPEX Stamp Show from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25, at the University of Nebraska East Campus Student Union at 35th and Holdrege streets in Lincoln.

McMullen said the event is held on the second floor of the student union with 10-12 dealers in one room and a second room with representatives from the U.S. Post Office, stamp displays and a table with free items for children.

McMullen said in his years of collecting he's noticed that stamp collecting can go in streaks.

“Stamps are kind of hot and cold. The last couple years the post office has put out a lot of stuff,” he said.

One of the interesting aspects is the history associated with stamps, McMullen said.

“There's a lot of history to stamps if you get into it,” he said.

Such as, all the presidents have been depicted on stamps, as well as different historic events and people.

“History is big with stamp collectors,” McMullen said.

He said there are many ways to get into collecting stamps, whether it be collecting single stamps, stamp books, sheets or plate blocks.

There are also a variety of stamps that have existed, such as air mail stamps and priority mail stamps, among others, McMullen said.

“In the old days there were half cent stamps up to $5 stamps,” he said.

McMullen said it can be a time-consuming hobby, because of the time to mount the stamps in a book properly.

For that, a collector uses either mounts or hinges, he said, rather than licking the back of the stamp. Hinges are harder on the stamp because they get stuck to the back of a stamp, whereas a full mount holds the stamps without hurting them, McMullen said.

Stamp shows like the one in Lincoln next weekend are a good way for people interested in stamp collecting to see what's available through the displays, he said.

McMullen said he usually checks out the shows himself, and plans to attend the LINPEX show.

“They always have something neat to look at,” he said.