Williams' City Post, 2c Brown, 9LB1, Used with Partial Cincinnati Circular Datestamp

The stamp with a tiny tear at right, creases, and a thin, but still a scarce carrier issue.
C.C. Williams was appointed superintendent of the Cincinnati carrier department in late October 1854, overseeing a service that had operated intermittently since 1837, with no service from October 1845 to February 1848. Early advertisements under his leadership listed delivery fees of 2c for city delivery and 1c for delivery to the mails, with strict instructions that fees be prepaid using either the official Eagle Carrier stamp (LO1) or the semi-official Williams' City Post stamp (9LB1). Williams eventually transitioned to a clerk role at the post office on April 1, 1855, though the 9LB1 stamp continued in use, as evidenced by three known covers postmarked May 1855, June 1855, and January 1856.
The 9LB1 stamp is extremely scarce, with only one unused pair and approximately ten off-cover singles known.