Edward Wilfrid Baxby (Ted) Proud (18 April 1930 – 6 February 2017) was a British postal historian,
philatelic
Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is possi ...
writer, and philatelic dealer who signed the
Roll of Distinguished Philatelists
The Roll of Distinguished Philatelists (RDP) is a Philately, philatelic award of international scale, created by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain in 1921. The Roll consists of five pieces of parchment to which the signatories add their n ...
in 2008.
Early life and family
Ted Proud was born on 18 April 1930."Edward Wilfrid Baxby (Ted) Proud Obituary", Patrick Pearson, ''
The London Philatelist
''The London Philatelist'' was first published in January 1892 by
Bromley
Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011.
Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, char ...
, Kent, in 1951, and secondly to Karoline Ulrike Springer in
Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
, London, in 1966.
He had seven children by his first marriage, and four by his second.
Philately
Proud founded the Proud-Bailey Company Limited in 1961 through which he published handbooks covering the postal history of over eighty different British colonies and which illustrate more than 50,000 postal markings. Proud-Bailey became a major postal history dealer. He sold the firm to
Stanley Gibbons
The Stanley Gibbons Group plc is a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange specialising in the retailing of collectable postage stamps and similar products. The group is incorporated in London. The company is a major stamp dealer and philat ...
in March 1987, as a result of which he became joint deputy-chairman of that firm. The consideration for the sale was £1.6m, satisfied by the issue of 13 million new ordinary 10p shares in Stanley Gibbons at 12.25p each."Newsdesk: Stanley Gibbons Acquire Proud-Bailey". ''
Gibbons Stamp Monthly
''Gibbons Stamp Monthly'' (GSM) is a leading British philatelic magazine which can trace its roots back to 1890. GSM is published by the famous stamps and collectables firm of Stanley Gibbons and each issue includes updates to their various catalo ...
'', May 1987, p. 9.
He was a past president of the International Federation of Stamp Dealers Associations and was the founder of ''Postal History International'' magazine in 1972. He was on the council of the
Philatelic Traders Society
The Philatelic Traders' Society Ltd. (PTS) is a trade association for stamp dealers and philatelic traders which was established in Britain in 1929 and continues to this day.
Activities
The Society acts as a trade association on behalf of ph ...
. He won a gold medal for his display of Aden at Espana 2004 and exhibited "India used in Malaya" in the Court of Honour at Singapore. In 2005, he won the Webb Cup from the
Hong Kong Study Circle Hong may refer to:
Places
* Høng, a town in Denmark
*Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and specia ...
Proud died on 6 February 2017. He received an obituary from
Patrick Pearson
Patrick Chilton Pearson VRD (1930 – 19 August 2022) was a British philatelist who signed the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 1974. He was Vice President of the Federacion Internationale de Philatelie.
Pearson was educated at Westminster ...
in ''
The London Philatelist
''The London Philatelist'' was first published in January 1892 by
Ronald Alcock
Ronald Cecil Alcock (26 March 1905 – 6 July 1991) was a British stamp dealer and philatelic publisher notable for writing or publishing some of the key works in British philately. He collaborated with Captain Frank Holland in many of his works. ...
, both of which were given to the Royal Philatelic Society London after Proud's death along with the stock of unsold books, his research information and the cash funds of the charity.
* ''History of the Australian Military Postal Services 1914-1950''
* ''History of the New Zealand Military Postal Services 1845-1991''
General Postal History Series
* ''British Post Offices in the Far East''
* ''British Airmails''
* ''British Maritime Mail'' (4 vols.)
* ''Postmarks of the Date Impression Books Post Office Records''
Postal History of the British Colonies Series
*''The Postal History of British Palestine, 1918-48'', 1985.
*''The Postal History of British Borneo'', 1987.
*''The Postal History of Kenya'', 1992.
*''The Postal History of Nigeria'', 1995.
*''The Postal History of Gold Coast'', 1995.
*''The Postal History of Basutoland and Bechuanaland Protectorate'', 1996.
*''The Postal History of Northern Rhodesia'', 1997.
*''The Postal History of Southern Rhodesia'', 1997.
*''The Postal History of British Honduras'', 1999.
*''The Postal History of Malta'', 1999.
*''The Postal History of British Guiana'', 2000.
*''The Postal History of Ascension, St Helena and Tristan Da Cunha'', 2005.
*''The Postal History of Aden and Somaliland Protectorate'', new edition 2005.
*''The Postal History of Malaya Vol.1 Straits Settlements'', 2nd edition 2000,
*''The Postal History of Malaya Vol.2 Federated Malay States'', 2nd edition 2000,
Other
* ''Penny Black Plates''. Proud-Bailey, Heathfield, 1985.
* ''Triple Odyssey: The Story of S.M.S.Emden and Her Crew''. Proud-Bailey, 2003.