This stamp honors the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Articles of Confederation, which established Canada as part of the British Commonwealth. It was also the first US stamp to have first day ceremonies and cancellation on foreign soil – in Montreal.
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The year 1933 marked the city of Chicago’s 100th anniversary. A nonprofit corporation, A Century of Progress, was founded in 1928 to plan and host the upcoming World’s Fair to be held there. A set of seven stamps was issued to promote the event, including #728 and #729.
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US #729 – Issued May 25, 1933 |
On May 22, 1997, the USPS issued the first stamp in the Looney Tunes Series, honoring Bugs Bunny.
The
Bugs Bunny stamp was issued in conjunction with a campaign to launch
the USPS’s “Stampers” program. As the official mascot of Stampers, it
was hoped Bugs would help revive youth interest in the hobby of stamp
collecting.
When the Bugs Bunny stamp was announced, many were
unhappy about picturing an animated character on a stamp. They felt
Bugs was too commercial and honoring him would cheapen America’s stamp
program. One newspaper editor wrote that the stamp was “a new low in
commercializing and trivializing [the Postal Service’s] once high-minded
stamp program.” But a USPS official replied that Bugs was a “unique
part of American history.”
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Despite the controversy behind the stamp, the USPS issued the stamp anyway.
The
first US semipostal stamp (sometimes called “charity” or “fundraising”
stamps) was the 1998 Breast Cancer Research issue. Since then, several
have been issued to raise money for worthy causes like stopping family
violence, saving vanishing species, and more.
A semipostal
stamp’s price pays for the First-Class single-piece postage rate in
effect at the time of purchase, plus an additional amount to fund causes
that are in the national public’s interest. By law, revenue from stamp
sales (minus postage and Postal Service costs) gets sent directly to a
selected executive agency or agencies.
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On
the morning of May 15, 1918, a crowd of several hundred gathered at
Washington, DC’s Polo Grounds to witness history being made. Army pilot
Lt. George Boyle climbed inside a Curtiss “Jenny” airplane with bags
containing 5,500 letters destined to fly on the first airmail route in
US history.
As President Woodrow Wilson looked on with a crowd of dignitaries, mechanics tried to start Boyle’s plane. ) The propeller turned but the engine wouldn’t start… After four attempts, mechanics
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checked the gas tank and realized the plane was out of fuel. Furthermore, there was no gas on the field, so mechanics quickly siphoned fuel out of nearby planes. Boyle flew off for his journey to Philadelphia at 11:46 a.m. – 45 minutes late and barely clearing nearby trees!
On May 14, 1918, stamp collector William Robey discovered the world’s most famous stamp – the Inverted Jenny.
America’s first airmail stamp (US #C3) was rushed. Engraving
started May 4 and the stamps were printed just three days before
release. Because they were bi-colored, the sheets were printed twice,
starting with the red frame. Then, the stamp sheets were set aside to
dry and later printed with the blue plate showing the airplane. A
single sheet made its way to the New York Avenue post office branch in
Washington, DC.
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On
May 13th, 1918, just two days after President Woodrow Wilson signed an
act allowing mail to be carried by airplane, the US Post Office
Department released the world’s first airmail stamp. To highlight the
importance of the occasion – and to help postmasters differentiate the
new stamp from regular issues – a bi-color design was created.
Two-color stamps were uncommon at the time.
The stamp was
designed by Clair Aubrey Huston at the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing. Huston had trouble finding a photograph of the plane to model
for the stamp’s design, as only 6 Curtiss Jenny planes in the world had
been specially modified to carry mail. In a stroke of luck, the very
plane engraved onto the stamp (Jenny #38262) was chosen for the
inaugural airmail flight!
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During the Civil War, coins disappeared from circulation. People
hoarded “hard money” and spent paper money. Because almost no coins
remained in circulation, it was a pain to make change for small
purchases.
A solution came when New-York Tribune owner
Horace Greeley suggested using postage stamps instead of small change.
Secretary of the Treasury Salmon Chase petitioned Congress to authorize
Greeley’s idea. On July 17, an act was passed allowing the Treasury to
issue Postage Currency.
The world’s first-ever adhesive postage stamp was issued in Great Britain 181 years ago and became valid May 6, 1840. As the world’s first postage stamp, the Penny black is one of the most famous, desired, and historically significant stamps of all time. …
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