Stamp Collecting Tools

ToolDescription
A. Stamp TongsI will use this to handle my stamps so that I don’t get them dirty or damage them.
B. Glassine EnvelopesIf I want to store lots of stamps without having to get a stock book, I can use these
see-through envelopes.
C. MountsI might use these to protect expensive stamps when I put them in an album.
D. Stamp AlbumThis is what I can put my stamps into once they are organized and I am ready to show them off.
E. Magnifying GlassWhen I want to look at my stamps closely, I can use this.
F. Perforation GaugeWhen my stamps have different sized perforations, I can use this to tell them apart.
G. Watermark TrayWhen I have stamps that look the same, but may have different watermarks as pictured in a
catalog, here is what I’ll use.
H. CataloguesI need this to tell how old my stamps are, what their designs show, and what their values
are.
I. Stock BooksI can use this to store my duplicates, or stamps waiting to be put into my album.
J. HingesI can use these to put my stamps into my album.
Happy Collecting

Black History Trivia Quiz

Are you a history guru or a neophyte? Take the quiz to find out.

Click link to begin quiz: https://worldhistoryproject.org/quizzes/black_history

Malcolm X was born May 19, 1925 and assassinated in 1965. His stamp was issued in 1999 (Scott #3273)

Click link to learn more about Malcolm X – https://www.mysticstamp.com/Products/United-States/3273/USA/

 

Hiram Revels Becomes the First African American Elected to US Senate

Senator Hiram Revels may appear on a stamp some day. Here a brief summary of his life and a link to the full article. 

Revels was elected by a vote of 81 to 15 in the Mississippi State Senate to finish the term of one of the state’s two seats in the US Senate left vacant since the Civil War. The seat had once been held by Albert G. Brown, who withdrew from the US Senate in 1861.

The election of Revels was met with opposition from Southern conservative Democrats who cited the Dred Scott Decision which was considered by many to have been a central cause of the American Civil War. They argued that no black man was a citizen before the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868. Because election to the Senate required nine years’ prior citizenship, opponents of Revels claimed he could not be seated, having been a citizen by law for only two years. Supporters of Revels countered by stating that the Dred Scott decision applied only to those blacks who were of pure African blood. Revels was of mixed black and white ancestry, and therefore exempt, they said, and had been a citizen all his life. This argument prevailed, and on February 25, 1870, Revels, by a vote of 48 to 8, became the first black man to be seated in the United States Senate.

Source: https://worldhistoryproject.org/1870/2/25/hiram-revels-becomes-the-first-african-american-elected-to-us-senate

Marvin Gaye Stamp Unveiling Ceremony

We had an opportunity to attend the Marvin Gaye stamp ceremony at the Greek Theatre, Tuesday, April 2 in Los Angeles. There were about 3000 attendees. It seemed that many were music lovers versus stamp collectors but needless to say the USPS was very busy and did a great job accommodating the crowd.

Marvin Gaye

March 2019 Activities

March 9 – Youth Symposium with the Ladies of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. – Pop-Up Exhibit – Illinois

March 15 – Visiting Every Child’s Hope – Pop-up Exhibit – Missouri

March 30 – Celebrating African American Women on Stamps with the Ladies of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. – Illinois

Marian Anderson: A Voice of a Lifetime

Calvin Mitchell wrote an excellent tribute to Marian Anderson. He states, “Marian Anderson—one of the greatest concert and classical singers of the twentieth century—was honored on a stamp issued by the United States Postal Service on January 27, 2005. She was the first female singer and the eighth woman to be honored in the Black Heritage Stamp Series issued annually by the U.S. Postal Service since 1978. During the first day ceremony for the stamp, Deputy Postmaster General John M. Nolan proclaimed the stamp “a powerful reminder of her unprecedented contribution to music and to her great sacrifice for justice.” To read more visit Marian Anderson

Source: Smithsonian National Postal Museum

Black History Month Facts

1963 – More than 200,000 people march on Washington, D. C., in the largest civil-rights demonstration in U. S. history; Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gives his “I Have a Dream” speech.

1963 – Four young Black girls are killed in the bombing of a Birmingham, AL church.

1964 – President Johnson signs Civil Rights Act of 1964, giving government more power to protect citizens against race religion, sex or national-origin discrimination.

1965 – Malcolm X, former minister in Nation of Islam and civil-rights activist, assassinated.

1965 – Thousands participate in three protest marches from Selma to Montgomery, AL for Black voting rights.

1965 – President Johnson signs Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Source: DiversityInc.

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