Virtual Exhibitions | Page 2 | National Postal Museum

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Women on Stamps

Virtual Exhibition

Margaret Mead stamp, 1998

People and the Post

About Postal Operations

International Philately

A Stamp for Every Country (Virtual Exhibit)

Fad to Fundamental

Airmail in America

The below virtual exhibits are available online only; they are not on display in the museum.

Photograph of rural carrier with horse and wagon, circa 1905

Bringing the World Home

Organizations such as the National Grange, the National Farmers’ Congress and State Farmers’ Alliance were all pushing for a free rural delivery system by the early 1890s. The struggle pitted farmer and rural associations against some Members of Congress who feared providing free delivery for the nation’s still rural-based population would be too expensive.

13-cent John F. Kennedy stamp

President Kennedy Assassinated

On November 22 1963, America's 35th President, John F. Kennedy, was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. To commemorate this tragic and pivotal event of the 20th century, the National Postal Museum has created this mini-exhibit highlighting different postage stamps with connections to President Kennedy's life and legacy.

The 30-cent Phoenix Rising From Flames stamp

The Sun Never Sets on the Stamps of the British Empire

A virtual exhibition highlighting fun stories and interesting anecdotes about postage stamps issued throughout the British Empire.

4-cent Pony Express stamp

Remember the Pony

The words "Pony Express" evoke colorful images in our minds of brave riders dashing over mountains or across deserts of the great American West with vital messages.

Long Life Vehicle, 1986

Director’s Favorite 15

When I came to the National Postal Museum in 2002 I was familiar with the museum’s work and reputation. What I did not yet realize was that the museum’s collections held such a great variety of objects. Nor had I realized just how magnificent many of these item were, not only those on exhibit, but also those in storage behind the scenes. In honor of the museum’s 15th anniversary I have selected 15 of my favorite items from the collection.
—Allen Kane, Former Director, National Postal Museum

Official photo of Wright Brothers' 1903 airplane

The 1928 International Civil Aeronautics Conference Stamps

The Unintended Legacy of a Forgotten Conference
On December 12, 1928, the Post Office Department issued 2-cent and 5-cent stamps in celebration of the International Civil Aeronautics Conference

First Day of Issue ceremony program envelope

Owney First Day Cover Art

The National Postal Museum devised this virtual exhibition with the dual purpose of telling the story of Owney and allowing contemporary cachet artists the opportunity to showcase their artwork to the public, inspiring new collectors.

10-cent Washington stamp

Fifteen Objects that Changed Postal History

In celebration of the National Postal Museum's fifteenth anniversary, this exhibit uses 15 items in the National Postal Museum's collections to examine important developments in the history of the U.S. postal system.

depiction of Aeromarine’s Curtiss Model 75, which opened the first regular air services between Havana and Florida

The Pichs Collection

Exploring Cuba's History Through Postage Stamps
Explore Cuba's postal and aviation history in an ongoing research and exhibition effort to study and bring to the public an important research resource for the cultural history of Cuba, the Roberto Pichs collection of Cuban postage stamps.

Airmail etiquette, Mexico

Mexico Via Airmail

Political leaders purposefully use print culture to promote political agendas, solidify authority, and fire patriotic emotions. The stamps issued by Mexico after its 1910-1920 revolution offer a compelling example. Among the postage stamps issued for this purpose, Mexico's airmail stamps played a significant role. This virtual exhibition is bilingual (English and Spanish) and features stamps and mail of Mexico.

The Duke Kahanamoku stamp was issued on August 24, 2002.

People and Places of the Pacific

Beginning with the Pacific Islands and ending with the nations on the Pacific Rim, this exhibition highlights the political and cultural relationship between these nations and the United States through the medium of postage stamps.

25-cent Flathead Headdress stamp

The American Indian in Postage Stamps

Leadership, Accomplishment and Cultural Celebration
Historic American Indian leaders honored here on postage stamps, exemplify a wide range of reaction to the radical confrontations that would drastically affect the traditions and culture of their peoples. Some chose resistance and war; others chose a path of adaptation and accommodation to a new way of life. In all cases, these leaders of nations were elder representatives of huge extended families, and their commitment to future generations was paramount.

Mural called Bimini Island featuring a painting of American Indians performing a variety of activities

Indians at the Post Office

Native Themes in New Deal-Era Murals
There is much to be discerned about the post office murals from the 1930s and 1940s, and what they can tell us about the way we see, and have seen, the world.

40 cent Gaillard Cut Airmail stamp from Panama Canal Zone

Canal Zone Stamps

Though it existed as a stamp-issuing entity for only about seventy-five years, the Panama Canal Zone has a long history.

10-cent Lexington and Concord 1775 by Sandham stamp

Onwards to Victory

American Military History Through Stamps (1775-1913)
This virtual exhibition showcases major events in American military history from the start of the American Revolution through the Spanish-American War.

Perforating paddle

Oddly Interesting

Beyond those items that everyone would expect to see in a postal museum are some objects that raise eyebrows among the museum's staff, let alone the general public.

$13.65 Capitol Dome stamp

Dan Brown’s Lost Symbol

Many of the people and places mentioned in Dan Brown's THE LOST SYMBOL appear on U.S. postage stamps. Without revealing Brown’s plot, this philatelic narrative showcases stamps that fall into this genre.

$9.95 Moon Landing single

One Giant Leap for Mankind

Celebrating NASA & Apollo 11 Through Stamps
To commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, the National Postal Museum, in partnership with the National Air and Space Museum, has created an online exhibit featuring space related objects from the collections of both museums. These objects highlight a narrative of NASA accomplishments leading up to the Moon landing and beyond.

Ustsysolsk issued stamp No.1 with a bear in the forest

Russian Zemstvos

The G.H. Kaestlin Specialized Collection
This virtual exhibition is presented by both the National Postal Museum and the U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Information Programs. It shows one of the three best museum Russian stamp collections in the world.

stamp of ducks landing on water

Glorious Flight

The Jeanette C. Rudy Duck Stamp Collection
The lovely, alluring duck stamps have captivated many collectors, including Jeanette Cantrell Rudy. The indomitable Mrs. Rudy, however, occupies a niche all her own. Over a fifty-year span, she assembled the hobby’s foremost collection. This exhibit features a sampling of the collection’s premier items, including the first duck stamp ever sold, errors, artist-signed issues, and remarques.

$5 Columbian Exposition Panama-Pacific small die proof

The Nation’s First Commemorative Stamps

The 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s initial landing in the “New World” provided Chicagoans with an occasion to reflect, to celebrate, and to memorialize the adventurous Italian navigator. Though financial and construction problems postponed the celebration for one year, in 1893 city leaders hosted a magnificent international exhibition to commemorate both Columbus and the nation’s progress over those four centuries—the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. In keeping with the exposition’s celebratory theme, the U.S. Post Office Department issued the nation’s first commemorative stamps, the “Columbians”.

Advertisement for airmail service

Birth of an Industry

Though difficult to believe, the beginnings of the modern civil aviation industry lie within the Post Office. Indeed, it was airmail that started the United States on its way to the system of airports and airways that millions of Americans travel on a daily basis.

5-cent Jefferson Davis De La Rue Confederate printing plate

Confederate States of America (CSA)

The Confederate government in Richmond, Virginia, assumed control over the economic, political, and military life of the South. The Confederacy solved the problem of moving mail by creating its own postal service.

10-cent Special Delivery plate proof

Certified Plate Proofs

Welcome to the National Postal Museum collection of certified plate proofs (CPPs).

3kr Franz Josef stamp

Hunting for Wiesenthals

The world knows Simon Wiesenthal as a Holocaust survivor who tracked down Nazi war criminals for more than half a century. What many do not know is that he spent his evenings on a very different quest: searching for vintage postage stamps.

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