John Kerr Tiffany (1842-1897) of St. Louis, Missouri is considered one of the earliest stamp collectors (known as philatelists) in the United States and belongs to the American Philatelic Society’s Hall of Fame. Tiffany was also the first president of the society in 1886 and was re-elected the following ten years, until he decided to stop running. In addition to having been an avid stamp collector, Tiffany created one of the largest library’s on the topic of stamps during his era, along with publishing books, catalogs and indexes on the topic. The National Postal Museum Library contains a manuscript copy from 1880-81 of Tiffany’s Philatelic Index.
Tag: stamps
On May 20, 1927, at 7:52 a.m., Charles A. Lindbergh, an air mail pilot, flew from New York to Paris, arriving at 10:22 p.m. the next day. He flew 3610 miles and became the first man to fly non-stop across the Atlantic alone, breaking the non-stop distance record for an airplane. The sources listed below provide a window into aviation history and help capture the excitement and romance of a major breakthrough in air travel.
The National Postal Museum Library has many resources on stamp collecting, one for children, one for adults. —Elizabeth Periale, ably assisted by Paul McCutcheon The boys' own guide to stamp collecting Melville, Frederick John, 1882-1940., HE6213 more »
It's not just about the cookies . . . March 12 was Girl Scout Day. Juliette Gordon Low (1860-1927) founded the Girl Scouts of America. She organized the first Girl more »
Franklin D. Roosevelt was born on January 30th, 1882. January is also National Hobby Month. In honor of both, here's a photo from the National Postal Museum Library's photo collection—of more »
Many children in the United States write letters addressed to Santa Claus at the North Pole each year. But how many of you have written to scientists living at the more »