| August A. Dietz, Sr. | |
| Nationality: | American |
| Birth Date: | October 19, 1869 |
| Death Place: | Richmond, Virginia |
| Significant Projects: | study of mail and postal history of the Confederate States of America |
August Dietz (October 19, 1869 – September 26, 1963) was a philatelist, editor and publisher, who specialized in the study of mail and postal history of the Confederate States of America.
Dietz was born in Prussia on October 19, 1869. He moved to Richmond, Virginia, in the United States in 1871, and began his collecting of postage stamps in 1888.
He died September 26, 1963, in Richmond, Virginia.
Because he was a trained lithographer and typographer, and because he had access to some of the postal sources of the Confederate States of America, he became interested in the postage and philatelic history of the Confederate States.
Today he is regarded as the Father of Confederate Philately.
He established himself in Richmond at 900 West Clay Street, Station A, Richmond, Virginia.
In 1896, Dietz became the editor of The Virginia Philatelist, a monthly philatelic magazine published in Richmond. He formed his own printing company, called the Dietz Printing Company, in 1901.[1] In 1924, he began writing articles on Confederate philately and eventually became the editor of the journals The Southern Philatelist (1924-1929) and The New Southern Philatelist (1929-1933).
Dietz was considered an expert in Confederate philately and wrote widely on the subject. Some of his studies included:
Dietz received numerous honors including:
The August Dietz Award is named in honor of the Founding Father and first President (1935–1939) of the Confederate Stamp Alliance. It is presented for distinguished research and writing in the field of Confederate philately. From 1962 through 1978 the award was presented for articles printed in the Confederate Philatelist. After 1978, the criteria were modified to include any article or publication in the field of Confederate philately.