U.S. Postal Service Announces Stamps Celebrating
Its 250th Anniversary
WASHINGTON — On July 26, 1775, the Second Continental Congress established a postal system for the United Colonies and appointed Benjamin Franklin as the first postmaster general. The U.S. Postal Service today announced two stamp issues to celebrate its 250th anniversary — one of which is only available in an exclusive booklet.
The second release, 250 Years of Delivering, is a pane of 20 stamps by cartoonist Chris Ware that invites the public to spot a fun array of familiar postal items and icons while following a mail carrier on her rounds through four seasons of the year.
The 32-page booklet — Putting a Stamp on the American Experience — celebrates the cultural importance of U.S. stamps.
Highlighting the popular series and subjects that give the stamp program its range and depth, this booklet — only the fourth ever issued by the Postal Service — commemorates the 250th anniversary of our nation’s postal system and celebrates the enduring influence of stamps on our shared heritage.
Two self-adhesive sheets of a new intaglio printed stamp featuring Benjamin Franklin are available exclusively with the booklet. The stamp is based on an 1875 reproduction of an 1847 5-cent stamp, one of the first official U.S. postage stamps.