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New USPS stamps issued for the Boston 2026 World Expo
New stamps were issued by the U.S. Postal Service Thursday to celebrate the Boston 2026 World Expo in May. Photo courtesy of USPS
Aug. 14 (UPI) -- Stamp collectors have a new stamp to get excited about, along with a convention to attend.
The United States Postal Service released new stamps at the Great American Stamp Show Thursday in Schaumberg, Ill., to celebrate the Boston 2026 World Expo, May 23-30, 2026, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
The new stamps also celebrate the nation's 250th anniversary.
Dan Gretta was the artist for the stamps. Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, was the designer. The stamps are Forever stamps.
"This year, the Postal Service celebrated its 250th anniversary -- a milestone that's older than the nation itself," said William G. Fraine, senior vice president of national sales for USPS, at the Great American Stamp Show. "This highly anticipated expo celebrates, as no other event can, the confluence of art, education, history and international goodwill. Issued to celebrate this once-per-decade extravaganza, these stamps also highlight the special role of Boston in the American Revolution as we prepare to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of our nation."
Yamil H. Kouri, Jr., president of the Boston 2026 World Expo, said the show "will be the largest world philatelic exhibition in at least a decade. There is tremendous excitement about this event, both in the United States and abroad, because we will also be celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence."
Featuring digital illustrations, the two intaglio-printed stamps resemble vintage engravings.
One of the two stamps depicts the Old North Church, the oldest standing church building in Boston, as it appeared during the American Revolution. The second shows a midnight rider on horseback in Colonial clothing holding a lantern to light his way.
On the evening of April 18, 1775, the Old North Church became an icon of the American Revolution when two lanterns in the bell tower signaled riders to warn Colonists that the British were crossing the Charles River and marching west toward Concord, Mass., where the Colonists were thought to be storing munitions.
The battles of Lexington and Concord happened the following day, marking the start of the Revolutionary War.
