How Do You Collect United States Postal Stamps?
The first United States postage stamps were issued in 1847. These were 5- and 10-cent stamps with Benjamin Franklin’s portrait. Collecting U.S. stamps is a rewarding hobby, and stamp collectors have been around since the 1850s. There are five major U.S. postage stamp categories: definitive, commemorative, semi-postal, airmail and others. The two most popular are definitive and commemorative. Definitives are the most common stamps and are used for everyday mail. Commemorative stamps, first issued in 1893, are special stamps issued to honor important people, historical events, U.S. culture, literature, art, sports and science. Start with your local United States Post Office. At the post office, you can acquire all recently issued stamps, special commemorative souvenirs and other collecting materials. Save stamps from your mail and the mail of your friends and relatives. Also ask relatives for stamps from old envelopes that contain letters from family archives. You’ll need to know how to
