Small Manuscript Collections, Martin Severe Collection, First State Covers

Martin Lee Severe is a collector of First Day Covers who has donated to many archives and other programs. He is from Maryland.

A collection of first-day covers celebrating different points in Delaware’s history. The collection’s largest focus is the discovery and founding of New Sweden. Several covers feature maps and illustrations of what the settlement may have looked like and include details of Peter Minuit and his company of Swedish colonists, as well as of the ships used in Minuit’s voyage – the Kalmar Nykel and the Fagel Grip. Other topics covered in the overall collection include the bicentennial of Delaware statehood, seafaring in Lewes, the ratification of the Constitution, Zwaanendael, and Delaware state symbols.