Award-winning exhibitor and author Roger Brody discusses Jamestown 1907 for the Philatelic Society of Lancaster County.
The presentation gives the historical background and the development, production and use of the three-stamp issue celebrating the 300th Anniversary of the 1607 English settlement of Jamestown, Virginia. In early 1903, the Virginia Historical Society petitioned the Post Office Department to issue special stamps to commemorate the Jamestown founding in conjunction with the 1907 Tercentennial Exposition on the shores of Hampton Roads, Virginia. Unlike previous fairs, the exposition had a strong military presence and international naval participation.
In October 1906, the Post Office Department agreed to issue 1¢ and 2¢ Jamestown commemorative stamps to meet the domestic postcard and letter rates, respectively. In March 1907, a month before the Exposition opening, with the expected assemblage of foreign war ships, postal officials saw the need for a 5¢ stamp to meet the foreign postage letter rate.