Water & US Stamps

The good old US Postal Service over the years has memorialized just about everything "American" - from presidents to volunteerism to you-name-it.  In case you were wondering, they have even from time to time captured "water" on stamps in its various nuances.

While the post office has existed in some form or another since 1775, it has only officially printed stamps since the late 1840's.  Between 1847 and 1990, I have counted 16 stamp issues that speak to water directly.  The first of my list is the 1922 issue on Niagra Falls - a 25 cent stamp, which incidently is valued at well over $15.00 today if it's unused.

 Since 1922 water stamps have included:  the Ohio River Canalization - 1928; Mirror Lake (Mt Ranier) - 1934; Old Faithful - 1934; Crater Lake - 1934; Two Medicine Lake (Mt Rockwell) - 1934; Panama Canal - 1938; Everglades National Park - 1947; St Lawrence Seaway - 1958; Water Conservation - 1960; Great River Road (Mississippi River) - 1966; Arkansas River Navigation - 1968; Anti-Pollution (Save our Water) - 1970 (pictured above); Soil & Water Conservation - 1984; St Lawrence Seaway (again) - 1984; and Preserving Wetlands - 1984.  Sorry, but my reference book only goes through 1990 - there could be more!

What amazes me is that out of all the people displayed on stamps, no water manager has yet been so honored!  BUT...they say there's a first time for everything!