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Even before Benjamin Franklin became the first Postmaster (July 26, 1775) of what would be the United States, postal markings were being used in the colonies to identify which letters and parcels had been properly paid for. This practice goes back as far as January of 1673, when the inland postal system (between the colonies) began to operate in full swing. By 1845, rate markings (for 5 cent, half-ounce, letters--under 300 miles distance--and for 10 cent, half-ounce, letters--over 300 miles distance) had become common.
By this time, England had been using adhesive postage stamps on its mail for five years. The year 1840 saw the introduction of the now-famous "penny black" portrait of Queen Victoria. The United States would eventually follow suit. In July of 1845, the new rates (mentioned above) came into effect. Practically immediately, certain local post offices began issuing "provisional" stamps. But within two years, these provisional stamps were unnecessary. On March 3, 1847, Congress authorized the printing of official United States stamps, carrying the five cent and ten cent rates. These stamps were scheduled to go on sale on July 1st of that year. The five cent design bore the image of America's first Postmaster, while the ten cent design showed our first President, George Washington.
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The year 1851 saw a reduction in postal rates. Each half-ounce would now cost only three cents to mail up to 3,000 miles or six cents to mail over 3,000 miles. There were also reduced costs for mailing circulars. A five cent fee was set up for registered mail. Consequently, a new series of stamps was ordered, and the earlier Franklin and Washington designs were declared invalid.
There were five designs: a one cent (blue) Franklin stamp; a three cent Washington; a five cent Jefferson; a ten cent (green) Washington; and a twelve cent (black) Washington. These designs were produced by Toppan, Carpenter, Casilear, and Company. Several plates were used for each stamp, and the designs differed slightly on the individual stamps within each plate. As a consequence, the stamps exist in different varieties. This is especially true of the one cent Franklin, for which five types and several subtypes are known.
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In 1857, a new introduction was made to United States postage stamps: perforation. All stamps before this point in time had to be cut away from one another with scissors. From1857 on, the stamps could be separated from one another by tearing along the perforations.
The designs used were the same as those that were already in use, but in 1860, several new designs were put into circulation, to pay for overseas letters. These were a twenty-four cent Washington, a thirty cent (orange) Franklin, and a ninety cent (blue) Washington.
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After the Civil War broke out, the US government issued a set of new stamps, declaring all earlier stamps to be worthless. The original designs (numbers 55-62) were less ornate than the finished product, and apparently these stamps were not put into circulation. The only stamp with the original design to be issued publically was number 62B, released on September 17, 1861.
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The modified design stamps came out in August of 1861 and were produced by the National Bank Note Company. Basically, the frame designs were somewhat more ornamented on this issue than on the trial stamps, 55-62.
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New colors to some of the stamps were also added during the War, in addition to two new designs. The first of these new designs was a two cent Andrew Jackson stamp, commonly called "black Jack." It was issued in 1863. Shortly following the War, Abraham Lincoln appeared on a black "mourning" fifteen cent stamp.
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From 1867 to 1870, the United States experimented with "grilling." By imprinting the stamps with embossed grills, the canceling ink would settle into the stamps more easily, making it harder to re-use stamps. Several different kinds of grills were in use simultaneously.
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Spring of 1869 saw the introduction of America's first pictoral stamps. In addition to the usual heads, there were the following depictions: a post office rider on horseback (113); a steam locomotive (114), and a ship, the SS Adriatic (117). Additionally, two works of art were placed on the stamp designs: the "Landing of Columbus" by Vanderlyn; "Signing of the Declaration of Independence" by Trumbull. Shields, eagles, and flags also appeared for the first time on US stamps in this series. A few of the sheets got turned around during the printing process, and some of the stamps came out misprinted with portions of the design upside-down.
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