Nichols & Co.'s Express/San Francisco. Black fancy illustrated company frank on 3¢ red Nesbitt entire, with indistinct red oval handstamp, San Francisco addressee, some aging, missing back flap, S, F.-V.F. and rare. Estimate  $300 - 400. C. P. Nichols and Edward Ludlow started their express in the spring of 1858, carrying mail between San Francisco and San Jose, and eventually expanding their routes northward; their distinctive express frank pictures a dog guarding a safe, sailing schooner, steam vessel and railroad train, and it was printed on plain envelopes and on 3¢ entires. Nichols & Co. eventually sold out to American Express, who adopted the same woodcut frank. $0 (Image)