My first task each morning consists of preparation for the daily A Stamp A Day article. I do have a calendar with many event anniversaries already penned-in for which I have appropriate stamps. For those dates that don’t already have a subject assigned, I first double-check the Wikipedia page for the date in question to make sure there isn’t a suitable topic. If there isn’t … Continue reading The Hawaiian Organic Act of 1900
On April 29, 1945, Führer and Reich Chancellor (Reichskanzler) of the German Third Reich Adolf Hitler married his longtime partner Eva Anna Paula Braun in the Führerbunker air raid shelter in Berlin. Designating Admiral Karl Dönitz as his successor, on the following day Hitler killed himself by gunshot while Braun committed suicide with him by taking cyanide. In accordance with Hitler’s prior written and verbal instructions, that afternoon their … Continue reading Eva Braun, the Führerbunker & Hitler’s Marriage
The British ship Bounty and the famous mutiny have been mentioned several times on A Stamp A Day, most significantly in stamp-issuer articles about Pitcairn and Norfolk islands as well as one about the death of Captain Bligh himself. It is a subject that has fascinated me since reading Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall’s Bounty Trilogy as a child, resulting in Pitcairn Island comprising … Continue reading Mutiny on HMAV Bounty
I have very few stamps from the Philippines in my collection and most are in rather poor condition. Last night, I happened upon an article about Manila’s Fort Santiago and remembered that I owned a stamp portraying this old Spanish citadel. I thought it would be a good topic for a “random stamp day”. My copy of Scott #387, issued under the U.S. administration of … Continue reading Commonwealth of the Philippines #415 (1936) – Fort Santiago
With researching the “town New Zealand saved” earlier this week and yesterday’s Anzac Day commemoration, I became quite interested in New Zealand’s contribution to World War I, specifically the role of the indigenous Māori soldiers in the war. Scott #167 is the only stamp I currently own from the 1920 Victory set so it seems an appropriate subject for today’s “random stamp”. I plan to add … Continue reading New Zealand and the Māori in World War I
April 25 is observed each year as Anzac Day — a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders “who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations” and “the contribution and suffering of all those who have served”. Anzac Day was originally devised to honor the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army … Continue reading Anzac Day, Lest We Forget
On those days that I choose a random stamp to feature when an event anniversary doesn’t match up with something in my collection, I never know in advance what will catch my eye. One of my few firm criteria for “random stamp days” is that an issue from the United States is NOT featured as the nation is aptly covered with commemorations (although, in time, … Continue reading The Town New Zealand Saved
I’ve long felt that certain birds make excellent subjects for air mail stamps, particularly those that look majestic while in flight. I’d rather see birds such as the American bald eagle, Andean condor or peregrine falcon on an air mail stamp than most aircraft (exceptions being a certain upside-down Curtiss Jenny, The Spirit of St. Louis or a Wright 1903 Flyer). Today’s featured stamp portraying Canada … Continue reading The Canada Goose
A Stamp A Day 