Nominate Women for Commemorative U.S. Stamps
"Women Putting Our Stamp on America" is the 1999 theme for National Women's History Month. Which notable American women would you like to see honored on a commemorative postage stamp? The Citizen's Stamp Advisory Committee will consider your nominations if you make a strong argument for their historic importance.
These criteria guide the committee in choosing new subjects:
- U.S. postage stamps shall feature American or American-related subjects.
- No living person shall be honored by portrayal on U.S. postage.
- Commemorative stamps honoring individuals usually will be issued on, or in conjunction with, significant anniversaries of their birth, but not sooner than ten years after the individual's death.
- Events of historical significance shall be considered for commemoration only on anniversaries in multiples of 50 years.
- Only events and themes of widespread national appeal and significance will be considered.
- Stamps shall not be issued to honor individuals whose principal achievement is associated with religious undertakings or beliefs.
- Nominations should be submitted at least three years in advance of the proposed date of issue to allow sufficient time for the committee's consideration and for design and production if the subject is approved.
Each nomination should include the woman's full name, birth and death dates, and a thoughtful argument for her importance in America's history.
Send all nominations to:
Citizen's Stamp Advisory Committee
c/o Stamp Management
U.S. Postal Service
475 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Room 4474 #B
Washington, DC 20260-6756
Have each student report back to the class as a whole, choosing from one of these options:
- Nominate an American woman for a new commemorative stamp. Write a persuasive essay about her contributions and submit it to the U.S. Postal Service for consideration.
- Design a full-color commemorative postage stamp, including symbols of her achievements.
- Design an original "First Day Cache," drawn on a white envelope.
- Write and submit a biographical entry for posting on the Internet's Encyclopedia of History (www.teleport.com/~megaines/woindex.html).
- Develop and present a first-person performance as the woman, wearing something she might have worn and speaking about her own life.
- Prepare for a television interview, representing the woman on a "Lives of the Famous" program. Have another student "interview" you, asking questions you have prepared for answering.
- Write a short skit about a dramatic event in the woman's life and stage a performance for the class.
- Write a newspaper article describing a particular accomplishment of the woman as though the event has just occurred. Remember to answer "who, what, when, where, and why" in the first paragraph of your story.
- Construct a freestanding monument featuring the woman's likeness and incorporating symbols for her life activities. Describe the monument on a large card for viewers.
- Build a three-dimensional diorama of an event in her life.
- Paint a mural or develop a timeline of her life, illustrating its highlights.
The results of this creative work can be shared through hallway displays, or by costumed "time travelers" making scheduled appearances in other classrooms or at a school-wide assembly.
-- Created by the National Women's History Project, 1998.
-- Edited and used with permission by Connie Hendrix, 1999