Mystic Stamp Learning Hub

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors

Top Stories and Guides

Want to start collecting stamps? Want tips on maintaining your collection? Start here.

  • USPS Unveils Barbara Bush Stamp

    At the White House on May 8, the US Postal Service revealed the artwork of a commemorative Forever stamp to celebrate the centennial year of former first lady Barbara Bush’s birth.

    Read More
  • 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.

    Read More
  • U.S. Postal Service Announces Stamps Celebrating Its 250th Anniversary

    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.

    Read More
  • Check Letters

    Check letters are simple a way of indicating where in the sheet a stamp was printed.

    Read More
  • 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.

    Read More
  • 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.

    Read More
  • 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.

    Read More
  • 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.

    Read More
  • Why Collect Stamp Blocks of Four?

    The broad appeal for blocks is scarcity or rarity, and eye appeal (blocks of 4 are balanced and pretty).

    Read More

This Day in History

Learn about the history of US stamps with a daily snapshot of this day in US stamp history.

  • May 12, 2025

    Birth of Katharine Hepburn 

    Katharine Houghton Hepburn was born on May 12, 1907 in Hartford, Connecticut. One of Hollywood’s leading ladies with a career that spanned six decades, she holds the record for the most Best Actress Academy Awards.
    Read More