This question is going out to Antonio(Smauggie) and Pat(Postmarks) and anyone else who has an interest in Minnesota Post Offices.
I have the following cover (from the Postal History Society Auction) that is clearly cancelled at La Sueur. I don't have a "La Sueur" in my system, only "Le Suer" and the Helbock book (United States Post Offices Volume II - The Upper Midwest) only has "Le Suer". Is this an error at the postoffice on the day or is the record in Helbock wrong?
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
Is Le Sueur not a city in Minnesota named after a French explorer?
So it would seem that it is a LASUEUR cancel in a LESUEUR city?
Sueur is normally a French feminine word that would be preceded by "La"
They who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. -Benjamin Franklin 27 May 2015 10:14:03am
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
I agree with Antonio. Definitely sounds like a printing error in Helbock.
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"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. -Edmund Burke"
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
While the city is now spelled "Le Sueur" a google search for "LaSueur" with no space like on the cover reveals many old genealogical records with that spelling, an expired listing for an old postcard from there, and an old United States Official Postal Guide using this spelling for the surrounding county.
While my quick search did not turn up stories of the spelling change, I'd say the post office had it right that day.
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
"expired listing for an old postcard"
Although the auction listing says La Sueur, a blowup of the postcard appears the letter is more like the e rather than the other a's.
Here are more postcards of the same park in Le Sueur Postcards
& a whole bunch of them here More Postcards/
The US Official postal guide does bring up a listing for LaSueur but the page it is apparently on cannot be seen
The same guide also shows multiple listings for LeSueur
The USGC shows one listing - a library with LaSueur (probably what the postal guide is listing) & a long list for LeSueur
"LE SUEUR Township and city were founded in 1852, with the village plats bearing this name, which in the next year was given to the new county. Two rival villages, each with a post office, one called Le Sueur and the other Le Sueur City, were incorporated respectively on June 10 and 17, 1858. Nine years later, by an act of the state legislature, March 9, 1867, they were united in a borough town, Le Sueur, which was incorporated as a city March 16, 1891"
It would not appear that there was ever a name change.
The USPS list of Post Offices shows: Post office #56058 LE SUEUR
Overall this would not argue in favor of LaSueur.
An interesting cancel.
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
"the postcard appears the letter is more like the e rather than the a"
Good catch. I found a clearer pic of the same card on an ebay listing and it is indeed an 'e'.
The Postal Guide link works for me; it takes me right to the page and even highlights "Lasueur" in yellow.
Maybe it's just a chronic victim of misspelling? On further results pages there are several government sites that perpetuate the error, including one court case involving a man who applied to work at the post office...
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
Thank you everyone for your help. An interesting little conundrum. The Town must have changed it's name at some time. It is interesting that the USPS doesn't list it at all under the Lasueur name. In searching on Lasueur I found the following clip from a newspaper.
I might write to the town and ask about the history of the name change.
I still have more questions than answers 29 May 2015 10:25:41pm
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
Le Sueur is the proper spelling for at least the last 100 years. I also have a copy spelled Lasueur. There is a book that lists both spellings. Helbock's books are great resources but they omit many branches or changed spellings. Here is mine.
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
I wrote to the Le Sueur County Historical Society ask if they could shed any light on this. A very helpful lady wrote back the following response:
"Hi Tim,
I looked through our old post office listing and the Le Sueur (town)
history book and found no reference to La Sueur.
Our early post office listing goes back to the 1850s when mail stations
were stagecoach stops. Along the river, they were steamboat stops. Le
Sueur was one of the first 3 towns in our county along with Kasota and
Ottawa, all on the Minnesota River.
As for Le Sueur, there were 3 Le Sueur's early on when people settled,
platted out the village and were competing to be the town. There was Le
Sueur, Le Sueur City and Middle Le Sueur. In 1867, they all combined and
incorporated as Le Sueur.
Le Sueur was always in Le Sueur County. Sibley County is our next door
neighbor to the north. The earliest map we have is 1874 and only Le Sueur
is shown, no La Sueur.
All I can think is that the "La" was an early spelling of Le Sueur or the
stamp was made based on the way people pronounced the town name. The town
and county are named after the French explorer, Le Sueur. People today
primarily pronounce the city name "La" Sueur not "Lee" Sueur. Yet, when
talking about the county, they pronounce it "Lee" Sueur. Could the stamp
have been made with an error, La instead of Le, and just used anyway?
Do you have a year on the mailed item you have? If so, let us know. That
might be a clue.
Thanks,
Kathy"
By the stamp this would have been mailed around 1870 or 1871, right?
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
Tim asked,
"By the stamp this would have been mailed around 1870 or 1871, right?"
Not necessarily. It could have been several years after the postal stationery was issued, and post offices still had stock available (or patrons had had the stationery on hand and were finally using it). I think!
re: Need a little help with a cover from La Sueur Minnesota
Agreeing with Bob, cover could've been posted later. Note the printed corner card. When I was last involved with stamps, the post office would print that for for if you bought the full box of 500. Don't know how that worked in those early days, but stands to reason that they had a big supply of stamped envelopes if they went to trouble of printing them... Perhaps many years worth.