On August 20, 2005, the USPS issued the first stamps in a nostalgic series honoring classic cars.
Automobiles of all sorts have been featured on US stamps for years. One of the first US stamps to picture an automobile was US #296, issued for the Pan-American Exposition. The stamp pictured an early electric automobile used for passenger service by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
Since then, the USPS issued dozens more stamps honoring cars – from antique vehicles of the 1800s to early electric autos to the stylish cars of the mid-1900s. Cars have long been a popular topic on stamps, so in 2005, the USPS introduced a new series honoring the stylish cars of the 50s, 60s, and 70s – America on the Move.
The first stamps in the series honored 50s Sporty Cars – the 1953 Chevrolet Corvette, 1954 Kaiser Darrin, 1952 Nash-Healey, 1953 Studebaker Starliner, and the 1955 Ford Thunderbird. The stamps were dedicated at the Michigan State Fair in Detroit on August 20, 2005. During the ceremony, the deputy postmaster general proclaimed, “Automobiles have always been a clever way of celebrating our American history and culture. These cars are a perfect reminder of the 1950s and America’s optimism that the nation’s future was looking bright.”
The stamps were designed by Carl Herman and their artwork was provided by Art Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick had previously been an advertising designer and illustrator for General Motors. He also designed the Packard four-door convertible and hardtop sedans when he was only 20 years old. Additionally, he built custom cars for notable entertainers Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, and Al Jolson.
The second set of stamps in the America on the Move Series was issued on October 3, 2008, at the Fall Carlisle Collector Car Swap Meet and Corral in Carlisle Pennsylvania. The set, titled “50s Fins and Chrome,” pictured a 1957 Chrysler 300C, a 1957 Lincoln Premiere, a 1957 Pontiac Safari, a 1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk and a 1959 Cadillac Eldorado.
Speaking about the stamps, which were again illustrated by Fitzpatrick, a USPS representative said, “Automotive history is brilliantly illustrated on these awesome stamps. We are proud to feature these classic cars on stamps here at the mecca of car shows.” Flamboyant tail fins and shiny chrome accents were hallmarks of the 1950s cars that heralded the dawn of the space age in America.
The third set of stamps in the series, titled “Muscle Cars,” was issued on February 22, 2013, at the Daytona International Speedway – two days before the Daytona 500. The stamps, with art by Tom Fritz, pictured the 1966 Pontiac GTO, 1967 Shelby GT-500, 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona, 1970 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda, and 1970 Chevelle SS.
In speaking about the stamps, the USPS said, “The Muscle Cars stamps celebrate an exciting era in American automotive history. Typically equipped with big, powerful engines, these high-performance vehicles first roared onto our roads in the 1960s. Raw power has a stamp of its own, and these limited edition stamps feature five iconic muscle cars.”
Click here for lots more car stamps.
Click here to see what else happened on This Day in History.
I was fortunate enough to attend the First Day Ceremony when the 50s Sporty Cars were issued in Detroit on August 20, 2005. It was pretty cool, and I got to make up a whole bunch of my own unique FDCs for my US FDC collection.
See the USA in your Chevrolet! Remember that commercial song???
I certainly do. We had a two tone 1955 Chrysler Newport. So nice to have two shades of blue on a car.
Don, you and your great team did it again. Grate all the way…glad I am back this time till I run out of life or money…I pray both do not….you and yours have set my life back on track, at 80 I am good for another round of life…
I look forward to your daily posts which I find so interesting. As a retired Social Studies teacher I frequently used stamps to emphasize various historical events or people. It was surprising how any of my students were stamp collectors. When I was in high school, the school librarian introduced me to first day covers. She would order these covers for me and a number of other students. We only had to pay to cover the expense of the cover and the stamps to be applied.
Interestingly, my mother’s sister was married to Charles H. Mekeel Jr. My Uncle Charles’ father and his brother had founded Mekeel’s Stamp business located in St. Louis. They were a leading company dealing in stamps and published Mekeel’s Stamp Weekly. My Uncle Charles also offered a stamps on approval service and he often gave my brother and I with older stamps for our collections.
A while back you mentioned how Latvia, upon obtaining independence after World War I, printed stamps on the back of German maps. I was given a large box full of these stamps by my Aunt Mary Mekeel when I was a teen ager. I sold the box to a coin/stamp dealer in Trenton for $10. A few weeks later when I visited the shop again, the owner gave me another $20 for the stamps sayig that he had learned they were worth considerably more than he initially thought. The photo of the stamps you provided in your article were exactly like those I had sold so any years ago. I always wondered about those stamps; your artile provided answers to many of my questions.
Incidentally, my Uncle Charles Mekeel’s personal stamp collection was sold to Applebaum’s in Philadelphia and it’s sale paid for his four grand-children’s college educations back in the 1960-1970’s.