Hiram Edmund Deats (May 20, 1870 – March 16, 1963) was an American philatelist, historian and publisher from Flemington, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. He was especially acclaimed for his collection of revenue stamps.

Life and family

Hiram Edmund Deats was born on May 20, 1870, in the Brookville section of

Stockton Stockton may refer to: Places Australia * Stockton, New South Wales * Stockton, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region New Zealand *Stockton, New Zealand United Kingdom *Stockton, Cheshire *Stockton, Norfolk *Stockton, Chirbu ...

Hiram Deats Hiram Deats (April 12, 1810 – November 22, 1887) was an American businessman from Hunterdon County, New Jersey. He was known for manufacturing agricultural equipment, especially the Deats plow, and became the first millionaire in Hunterdon Cou ...

(1810–1887) and Elmira Stevenson (1830–1908). In 1929, he donated several pieces of agricultural equipment made by the Deats company, started by his father, to Rutgers University under the care of Professor

Wabun C. Krueger Wabun may refer to: * Wabun code, Japanese Morse code * Wabun, Virginia, place in the United States * Wabun Tribal Council, regional First Nations advisory council in Ontario, Canada * ''Wabun'', a wind god, further information may be found under: ...

. This collection, including the

Deats plow John Deats (February 1, 1769 – May 1, 1841) was an American wheelwright and inventor of the Deats plow from Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Life and family John Deats was born in 1769 to William Deats (also spelled Deitz), a German immigrant, a ...

, patented by his grandfather, John Deats, became important in the creation of the

New Jersey Museum of Agriculture The New Jersey Museum of Agriculture was an American agriculture museum, located in North Brunswick, New Jersey, North Brunswick, New Jersey, and focused on the evolution of agriculture in New Jersey. The museum's exhibits included farm tools and ...

in 1990. He died on March 16, 1963.

Collecting interests

As a youth, Deats started collecting postage stamps of the United States and the Confederate States of America and eventually created one of the finest collections of his era, eventually selling the collection. Deats specialized in the collecting of United States revenue stamps, and his collection, which in 1888 included the revenue collection of

Edward Boker Sterling Edward Boker Sterling (September 9, 1851 – November 29, 1925), of Trenton, New Jersey, was a philatelist who specialized in the study of United States postage stamps, postal stationery, and revenue stamps. Collecting interests Sterling is f ...

, was unsurpassed. George L. Toppan and Alexander Holland used this collection as a basis for writing, in 1899, ''An Historical Reference List of the Revenue Stamps of the United States Including the Private Die Proprietary Stamps'', which was re-printed in 1979 as ''The Boston Revenue Book''. Deats also formed one of the finest libraries of philatelic books and literature in the United States, which, in 1952, he donated to the Free Library of Philadelphia.

Philatelic activity

At the age of 16, Deats joined the American Philatelic Association (later renamed the American Philatelic Society) and served the society in various ways, including serving as president and generally attending at conventions.

Historian

From 1890 to 1957, he was the librarian for the Hunterdon County Historical Society. The library is now known as the Hiram E. Deats Memorial Research Library. From 1891 to 1905, he was editor and publisher of ''The Jerseyman'', a journal of local history and genealogy.

Honors and awards

Deats signed the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 1933 and was named to the American Philatelic Society Hall of Fame in 1963.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deats, Hiram Edmund 1870 births 1963 deaths Philatelic literature American philatelists People from Flemington, New Jersey People from Stockton, New Jersey Signatories to the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists American Philatelic Society Deats family