North Toronto’s Harold Gosney, A World Record Holder?
When it comes to the NTSC exhibits, the name Harold Gosney holds the top spot. Harold Gosney was born in 1914 and raised in Toronto. During WWII he served in the Air Force. He worked for the City of Toronto in the Finance Department and retired in 1975 after 43 years’ service.
Already an avid reader and learner at age 12, he started stamp collecting. Like most, at first he collected worldwide but later switched to a more serious, general collection of the British Commonwealth, specializing in Malta, the British West Indies and the De La Rue key plate issues of 1879 to 1956. He also specialized in thematic collections of British Royal Residences, and Gilbert and Sullivan.
He joined the North Toronto Stamp Club in 1945 and won the exhibitor’s Novice Award in 1948, and never looked back since. He continued exhibiting at the North Toronto club every year for a 52 year period by 1998; landing him a contender for the Guinness’ Book of World Records in continuous stamp exhibiting according to his daughter Betty.. Over the years, Mr. Gosney served on the NTSC executive as Vice President, Treasurer, and Exhibition Chairman. One of Harold’s most memorable exhibits was shown for Yonge Street’s 200th Anniversary named “Stamping up Yonge” which can be found on page 34 (or page 427) of this RPSC downloadable PDF:  http://tinyurl.com/oxnhck
The prolific Gosney exhibited nationally and internationally; and was an accredited regional and national level philatelic judge. He was a Life Member of our own NTSC, and a member of the APS, the PSS, the Malta Study Circle, and the British Caribbean Philatelic Study Group. In 1950 he joined the Royal Philatelic Society. By 1973 he was Chairman of the 41st RPSC Convention. After volunteering at CAPEX in 1951, he later served as Chairman of Volunteers at CAPEX 78, CANADA 82, and CAPEX 87. He became a Fellow of the Society in 1981. Mr. Gosney passed away in December 2000 with his family at his bedside at the York Central Hospital in Richmond Hill at the age of 86. At the time of writing, he is still survived by his wife Alice and two daughters Joy and Betty.
Sometime in 2001, the North Toronto club executive decided to create the “Harold Gosney Award” for the Best in Show according to Popular Vote using a Ballot Box at the Annual Exhibitions. The likes of Harold’s virtuoso exhibiting may likely never be matched again.