The Viet-Minh Overprints of French Indo-China
December 1945 to December 19,1946 [click here to read]
by Irving Kopf
The Stamp Lover, July 1965, Vol. 57 #4
(This piece appears virtually verbatim as the introduction to the Nu-Line catalog.
Reprint provided by APRL - the American Philatelic Society Research Library).
Location of the Viet Minh Printing House
Information provided by Tran Trong Khai of Ho Chi Minh City
January 2000
The stamps of Indo-china were overprinted by the Viet Minh at the Taupin printing house (Imprimerie Taupin) in Hanoi.
According to a small dictionary of old street names of Hanoi, and Khai's correspondence with retired postal officers, the street where the Taupin printing house was located in 1945 was called "Hang Long Street" (during the French colonial era, it had been called "Route Madarine" or more commonly, "Quan Lo Street").
In 1947, the name was changed to "De Latte de Tassigny Street". In 1954, the street was renamed once again, becoming "Nam Bo Street". Today it is known as "Le Duan street".
The printing house was located at Number 5 on the east side of the street. The name of the printing house was changed after the August Revolution (September 19, 1945) from Taupin to Viet Nam An Thu Cuc. During the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, the building was known as the General Department Store No. 5. Today it is the site of a large supermarket called Cua hang Bach hoa so 5.
1950 Saigon Cancels
Remaining stocks of Viet Minh overprints were apparently cancelled-to-order in Saigon. Click here to view a group of stamps cancelled "SAIGON R.P. / 2-9-1950 / SUD VIETNAM".
Declaration of Independence
On September 2, 1945, Ho Chi Minh declared the independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The full transcript of his speech is available here.
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