All About US Postage Stamps

The first US postage stamps were issued in 1847, and people have been collecting US postage stamps ever since. Coming just seven years after the first postage stamps were introduced in England, the first US stamps featured George Washington and Benjamin Franklin.

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US postage stamps often feature presidents and famous people. The rule of US postage stamps is that people cannot be features on US postage stamps while they are alive. The most popular US postage stamps of all time feature Elvis Presley. The only other person on the list of the ten all-time most popular US postage stamps is Marilyn Monroe.

The most common kinds of US postage stamps are called "definitive stamps." These are the US postage stamps printed in the most widely used current postage denominations, in very large quantities. Another type of US postage stamps is the commemorative stamp. These are US postage stamps issued to commemorate historic events, special people, or important subjects. Commemorative US postage stamps are usually larger in size than definitive stamps and are sold at post offices for an average of two months only, although they commemorative US postage stamps can be bought by mail order for a year. Special stamps are another type of US postage stamps, bearing different designs than the definitive stamps; Christmas stamps are an example of special stamps. These are not the same as special-purpose stamps; that is a different category of US postage stamps, issued in the proper denominations for Priority Mail, airmail and so forth.

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US postage stamps come in sheets, rolls (called "coils") and booklets. While self-stick stamps have become increasingly popular, US postage is also available in the traditional lick-and-stick (called "gummed") type.

US postage stamps are not the only product of the US Postal Service that is used in the mail. In addition to postage stamps, the US Postal Service issues envelopes that are pre-stamped with US postage, pre-stamped postcards, and aerogrammes. Aerogrammes are self-mailers that come already stamped with US airmail postage and can be folded over and stuck together to form a lightweight letter that doesn't need a separate envelope.

When postage changes, US postage stamps are issued that bear letters or simply the words "First Class." That is because the US Postal Service may start printing these stamps before they know how much the postal increase is going to be. You can also use any combination of US postage stamps to mail a letter or package; there are no rules that limit the number of US postage stamps you can use. However, if you are using a large number of US postage stamps, you want to be careful that they are all well stuck so that they do not fall off.