U.S. #5587
2021 55¢ Heritage Breeds – American Mammoth Jackstock Donkey
Issue Date: May 17, 2021
First Day City: Mount Vernon, VA
Type of Stamp: Commemorative
Printed by: Banknote Corporation of America
Printing Method: Offset, Flexographic
Format: Pane of 20
Self-Adhesive
Quantity Printed: 25,000,000
It can be fun to trace the ancestry of heritage breeds. These animals were traditionally raised by our forefathers and are still around today. One such animal is the American Mammoth Jackstock donkey.
The American Mammoth Jackstock has been around in one way or another since the earliest days of the United States. In fact, even George Washington and Henry Clay played a part in their history. These men had a goal of breeding large donkeys to be crossed with horses. They wanted to create bigger, stronger mules to serve as draft animals. Some of the donkeys bred to eventually create the American Mammoth Jackstock were the Maltese, Baudet du Poitou, Andalusian, Majorcan, and Catalan. By 1920, the population of American Mammoth Jackstocks reached five million.
To be characterized as an American Mammoth Jackstock today, males must be at least 14.2 hands tall, while females must be at least 14 hands. One hand is equivalent to about four inches and animals are measured at the withers (point where their neck meets their back).
American Mammoth Jackstock populations decreased in the 1950s, but have since made a comeback. However, few traditional all-black American Mammoth Jackstock donkeys exist today. Heritage breeders are working hard to bring them back.