Transportation

Death of Glenn Curtiss
Aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss died on July 23, 1930, in Buffalo, New York. Glenn Hammond Curtiss was born on May 21, 1878, in Hammondsport, New York. He became interested in bicycles as a young man and was a champion racer, riding bikes he had designed and built.

Bicycle Mail
On July 6, 1894, a San Francisco businessman operated a short-lived bicycle mail route in San Francisco, complete with his own stamps.

Birth of George Washington Goethals
US Army general and civil engineer George Washington Goethals was born on June 29, 1858, in Brooklyn, New York.

SS Savannah Crosses the Atlantic
On June 20, 1819, the SS Savannah became the first steamship to cross the Atlantic Ocean.

Orient Express
On June 5, 1883, the Orient Express made its first trip from Paris to Vienna.

First US Airmail Flight
On May 15, 1918, America’s airmail service began when two Curtiss Jenny’s departed New York and Washington, DC.

Inaugural Run of the Pony Express
On April 3, 1860, the Pony Express made its first trip from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California.

American Scenes & American Transportation Series
On March 10, 1995, the USPS issued the first stamps in two new definitive series – American Scenes and American Transportation (not to be confused with the Transportation Series).

Newspaper & Periodical Stamps
On March 3, 1863, an Act of Congress granted postal agents the ability to accept newspapers bundles, which would lead to the first US Newspaper and Periodical stamps two years later.