William H. Gross

An article in yesterday's New York Times features William H. Gross (shown at left), whose collection is the only one to contain every United States stamp issued in the 19th century.

The Times reports, "At first, Mr. Gross pursued collecting out of the public eye, exhibiting his stamps under the pseudonym Monte Carlo at national philatelic gatherings. He later went public and continued to develop his collection under his own name. In a highly publicized auction last fall, Mr. Gross bought a block of four rare misprinted airmail stamps for nearly $3 million and traded them for the Z-grill, completing his 19th-century collection."

According to the Times, organizers are expecting as many as 100,000 people to attend Washington 2006 before the show closes next Saturday, and they say the total value of the stamps on display exceeds $200 million.

To read the entire article, click here.