Stamp of Approval for Local Senior’s Collection

It’s safe to say George Clayton is a collector of sorts. His apartment at Edgemere senior living community is adorned with stamps, baseball cards, books and, of course, John Wayne memorabilia – highlighted by the life-size cutout that stands guard in the corner.

For more than 40 years, the veteran of two Vietnam tours has built his collections. It started in the late 1970s as an activity he could share with his stepson. Together, the two began to collect stamps, and over the following decades, Clayton’s interest and collections have grown – considerably.

“Once I get my teeth into something, I don’t hardly let go,” said Clayton, who estimates he and his wife once owned a collection of more than 50,000 books. He now manages the community’s five libraries.

Stamps are his passion – seven notebooks of John F. Kennedy on foreign stamps, two notebooks of Abraham Lincoln stamps, eight notebooks of presidents on foreign stamps, one notebook of unused U.S. Mint collection stamps, and two notebooks of world stamps. His oldest is a Benjamin Franklin stamp from 1861, followed closely by one of George Washington from 1870. Next on his list, a World War II stamp collection.

As sponsor of the Dallas-Park Cities Philatelic Society, Clayton hosts local stamp enthusiasts twice a month at Edgemere to trade, discuss and admire each other’s collections.