2016 First-Class Forever Stamp,Pickup Trucks

U.S. #5101-04
2016 47c Pickup  Trucks
Value:  47c
Issued: July 15, 2016
First Day City:  Syracuse NY
Type of Stamp:  First Class Mail
Printed by:  Banknote Corporation of America
Method:  Offset, Microprint
Self-Adhesive
Quantity Printed:  250,000,000

This block of four Forever stamps celebrates four decades of American pickup truck design, from the late 1930s through the mid-1960s, a period that saw the working truck transform into something much more than a tool. The four trucks depicted — a 1938 International Harvester D-2, a 1948 Ford F-1, a 1953 Chevrolet, and a 1965 Ford F-100 — trace an arc from the utilitarian prewar truck to the styled, chrome-trimmed vehicles that Americans were buying as much for identity as for function. Each illustration captures the distinctive design language of its era, rendered in a clean, graphic style that puts the lines and proportions of each truck front and center.

The stamps were dedicated on July 15, 2016 at the Syracuse Nationals, one of the largest all-American street rod and custom car shows in the country, held annually at the New York State Fairgrounds. The venue was a natural fit. The Syracuse Nationals draws tens of thousands of enthusiasts who share exactly the relationship with vintage American vehicles that these stamps celebrate — the sense that a truck is not just transportation but a connection to a particular time, place, and way of life.

The pickup truck's rise from farm implement to cultural touchstone is one of the more interesting stories in American consumer history. Through the postwar decades, as the middle class expanded and leisure time grew, Americans began buying trucks alongside or instead of family cars. Many held onto them for decades. The four trucks on these stamps represent that history in miniature, each one a recognizable landmark in the long story of the American pickup.