A commemorative stamp honoring women serving in the US armed forces was issued on September 11, 1952, in Washington, DC. Over 40,000 women served in the armed forces during World War II. The stamp features four service women, attired in the uniforms of branches of service represented, those being marines, army, navy, and air corps. The US Capitol appears in the background.
William K. Schrage designed the stamp. He used a photograph of four women in the armed services, furnished through the Post Office Department by the Department of Defense, as his inspiration. The photograph had originally been used in a recruiting folder, and none of the models in the photograph had actually been a member of the armed services. Charles A. Brooks engraved the vignette and frame. John S. Edmondson engraved the numerals and lettering. Six 200-subject electric-eye printing plates (#24681-24686) were made for and used on the rotary Stickney Press. Plates were used in pairs on the press, so each rotation of the press produced two sheets of 200 stamps, each of which was divided into four fifty-subject panes for distribution to post offices. Stamps were perforated 10.5x11 and printed on unwatermarked paper.
The 3-cent Service Women stamp paid the postage rate for a one ounce first-class domestic letter.
