Twelve 1895 Bureau Issue Stamps

Get our special collector’s set of 1895 “Bureau Issue” stamps – it’s a great way to capture history and build your collection fast.

For over 45 years, U.S. postage stamps were produced by private printing companies.  In 1894, the Bureau of En...  more

Twelve 1895 Bureau Issue Stamps

Get our special collector’s set of 1895 “Bureau Issue” stamps – it’s a great way to capture history and build your collection fast.

For over 45 years, U.S. postage stamps were produced by private printing companies.  In 1894, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing entered the lowest bid and won the contract.  The first “Bureau Issue” was marred by the fear of counterfeiting, so the BEP used the same designs on double line watermarked paper in 1895.  The faint “USPS” watermark is a neat piece of history and fun to detect. 

Sometimes the only difference between stamps that look alike is a watermark.  Watermarks are letters or patterns impressed into the paper used to produce certain stamps.  Modern US stamps don’t have watermarks, but many older ones do – in the shape of a single line or double line U, S, or P.