Career
Unsuccessful at the prospecting trade, Scott began to sell postage stamps for collectors and in a short period of time became the nation’s leading stamp dealer. During his lifetime, he was known as “The Father of American Philately” by his fellow stamp collectors. Scott published the first significant stamp journal in America in 1868, entitled American Journal of Philately.
Also, in 1868, he issued his first multi-paged postage stamp catalog, “A Descriptive Catalogue of America and Foreign Postage Stamps, Issued from 1840 to Date.” In a short period of time, his “Scott catalog” became the leading stamp catalog in the United States.
In 1885, he sold the rights to his business to the Calman brothers who renamed it the Scott Stamp and Coin Company. Scott was innovative in business methods, and conducted the first postage stamp auction ever held (May 28, 1870, in New York City).
This was a success and he continued to organize and conduct auctions in the United States and in Europe. He also was the first, in 1882, to issue an auction catalog with full color plates of the stamps on sale.
He was also the first to sell a postage stamp to collectors for over one thousand dollars.
Scott was active in organizing philatelic exhibitions and, in general, “selling” the stamp collecting hobby. Because of the continued existence and growth of the Scott catalog used by American stamp collectors, Scott’s name is not likely to be forgotten.
