The Szekula Family of Stamp Dealers

This website is dedicated to the Hungarian born stamp dealers Béla, Géza, Eugen and Frank Szekula. After moving to Lucerne in Switzerland each one of them opened his own stamp business with emphasis on international stamp trade. All four brothers were probably driven by money rather than the love of stamps, and especially Béla’s creative business ideas provoked more than one philatelic scandal during his career. However, the history of philately would arguably be considerably poorer without the Szekula family.

© 2018–2021            Contributors: Max Brack — Albert Little — David Rossall

Hermann Wiederhold

 
Ocean Stamp advertisement
Spring offer: 500 st. for CHF 2.50
(Berner Schulblatt 1936/1937)
Hermann Alexander Paul Wiederhold, son of Paul Ernst Hermann Wiederhold and Hermeline Wilhelmine Dölling Harmsen, was born in Hamburg on April 2, 1881. On November 15, 1906 Hermann Wiederhold married Mathilde Christine Müller at Gießen, Hesse, Germany. Working for Béla in Budapest since at least 1905 he became his closest comrade-in-arms for the next three decades, and an officer with “Prokura” in both Béla’s own company as well as the Cosmophilatelist A.G. founded in 1931. When Béla left the Cosmophilatelist A.G. in April 1935 business continued under this name for a couple more months, but in January 1936 the company was re-branded as “Ocean„ Stamp Ltd. with Wiederhold as director — a position he would hold for the next twelve years. Finally having his own stamp company must have meant a lot to him: Even after “Ocean„ Stamp Ltd. was liquidated in January 1948 the address books of Lucerne continued to state his occupation as “director of Ocean Stamp” up to the 1960s. Hermann Wiederhold died in Lucerne on February 3, 1967.

Postcard — April 1936

Sent on April 30, 1936 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Bäretswil.

item item
Scans provided by David Rossall.

Cover — June 1936

In January 1936, several months after Béla had resigned from the board, the Cosmophilatelist A.G. Luzern was renamed to „Ozean” Briefmarken AG. Twelve years later, in January 1948, the company was liquidated.

Registered cover sent on June 30, 1936 from Ringsted, Denmark to Ocean Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.
item

Cover — July 1936

Sent on July 17, 1936, from Berlin, Germany, to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item
Scan provided by David Rossall.

Cover — October 1936

Sent on October 9, 1936, from Wormerveer, Netherlands, to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item
Scan provided by David Rossall.

Cover — November 1936

Printed matter sent on November 17, 1936 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Reykjavik, Island.

item

Cover — May 1937

Sent on May 4, 1937 from Chaumont, Haute-Marne, France to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item item

Postcard — May 1937

Sent on May 18, 1937 from Budapest, Hungary to Lucerne.

item item

Cover — June 1937

Registered cover sent on June 30, 1937 from Château-Salins, France to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item

Cover — July 1937

Sent on July 12, 1937 from Zurich to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item

Cover — August 1937

Registered cover sent on August 30, 1937 from Trmice, Czechoslovakia, to “Ocean Stamp Ltd.” in Lucerne.

item item

Postcard — June 1938

Sent on June 9, 1938 from stamp dealer Karl Klemenc in Innsbruck, occupied Austria, to his friend Hermann Wiederhold in Lucerne.

item item

Cover — November 1938

Sent on November 10, 1938 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Wenatchee, Washinton, USA.

item item

Cover — April 1939

Sent on April 11, 1939 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Brooklyn, New York City, USA.

item item

Cover — May 1939

Sent on May 24, 1939 from Brønderslev, Denmark, to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item

Cover — November 1939

Sent registered on November 5, 1939 from Budapest, Hungary to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item item

Cover — December 1939

Sent on December 1, 1939 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Sliedrecht, Netherlands.

item

Postcard — April 1941

Sent on April 26, 1941 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Nesbyen, Norway.

item item
Scans provided by David Rossall.

Cover — May 1942

Censored cover sent on May 28, 1942 from Barcelona, Spain, to “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. in Lucerne.

item item

Cover — September 1942

Sent on September 26, 1942 by “Ocean” Stamp Ltd. to Tremezzo, Italy.

item
Scan provided by Max Brack.

Cover — December 1950

Sent on December 5, 1950 by Hermann Wiederhold to Mishawaka, Indiana, USA.

item item