MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The United States Postal Service is releasing a new line of Forever stamps to honor the Mississippi River.
The stamps were introduced Monday morning in an in-person ceremony at the Beale Street Landing in Memphis.
According to the Postal Service, the 10 different stamps follow the river's course from north to south.
"In addition to its many recreational and natural attributes, the Mississippi is also the backbone of the U.S. economy — serving as a riparian superhighway, transporting more than 175 million tons of freight annually,” said Gary Barksdale, the Postal Service’s chief postal inspector, who served as the dedicating official. “Today, we continue the Postal Service’s tradition of celebrating our nation’s wonderful heritage with the dedication of 10 truly special Forever stamps honoring the Mighty Mississippi.”
“The United States Postal Service honors individuals and buildings and entities that have made a huge impact on our country. Well the Mississippi River hasn’t been honored in such a way in over 100 years," said Mayor Strickland.
“One of my photos was selected to be part of the project. It’s the Julien Dubuque Bridge in Dubuque Iowa. The photo was taken 13 years ago. And the Postal Service found it on Flickr. And sent me a note during COVID and said we'd like to use this in the project. And I had a discussion with them and said OK. It was pretty exciting," said Don McLaughlin, Stamp Artist.
The Mighty Mississippi Forever stamps are being sold in panes of 10. Customers can buy the stamps online, over the phone by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through the USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide.
More from the USPS:
The portfolio of 10 exquisite photographic stamps each represent a state along the course of the river. With five rows of two stamps each, the pane’s arrangement corresponds to the states’ north-south and west-east sequence. Art Director Ethel Kessler designed the pane using existing photographs.
Minnesota’s stamp shows the Mississippi’s source waters of Lake Itasca, as shown in a photo taken by Dana Holm. Wisconsin is represented by Jay Olson-Goude’s photo showing an autumn view of the Great River Road.
The Iowa stamp shows David Sebben’s photo of the steamboat American Queen near the city of Bettendorf. In Illinois, a sailboat passes limestone bluffs adorned with fall foliage, as depicted by Walter Blackledge.
Missouri is represented by Evan Spiler’s photo of the St. Louis skyline at sundown, punctuated by the Gateway Arch. Kentucky is seen in the city of Wickliffe, just downriver from where the Ohio River spills in, as captured in a photo by Larry Braun.
A Mississippi River Parkway Commission photo shows an Arkansas levee curving parallel to a river meander near forest and farmland. In Tennessee, M.J. Scanlon photographed a towboat pushing cargo barges upriver toward Memphis.
Louisiana is represented by Sean Pavone’s photo of the New Orleans skyline and the twin-span Crescent City Connection bridges. In the state of Mississippi, within the wilds of a delta bayou, photographer Ron Levine captured cypress trees that seem to drip with Spanish moss.