Officials
Another area in which United States philately differs from nearly all the rest of the world is in our Official Stamps. In 1873 the Post Office issued a series of stamps for the various government agencies that used stamps.
United States Stamps
Because of its familiarity to most American philatelists, we tend not to appreciate just how difficult collecting United States stamps is compared to collecting the stamps of most other countries.
The First United States Postage Stamp
The issuance of postage stamps was one of the great technological and commercial innovations of the nineteenth century.
Hermes and the Stamps of Greece
There is no more appropriate stamp design than the portrait of Hermes, the messenger god in his winged helmet, on the first stamps of Greece.
Check Letters
Check letters are simple a way of indicating where in the sheet a stamp was printed.
Trans-Mississippi Issue of 1898
Despite the unpopularity of its first commemorative set, the Columbian Exposition issue of 1893, the United States Post Office commemorated the 1898 Trans-Mississippi Exposition with their own set of commemorative stamps in 1898.
Columbian Exposition Issue of 1893
The Columbian Exposition set of 1893 (Scott #230-245) was the world’s first commemorative set and it has become one of the most popular sets not only in United States philately but in the world. But this was not always so.
Stamp Survival
The problem of what quantities exist of different classic stamps has been one of the great difficulties of philatelic research. Counts of stamps such as United States 5¢ and 10¢ 1847 tend to be little more than guesses.
Some Characteristics of a Successful Hobby
Hobbies are successful when they allow a diverse group of participants to engage in an activity where they can find enjoyment.