August 2020

This Day in History… August 31, 1957

Posted on August 31, 2020 by MysticStamp

Champions of Liberty Series 

US #1096 was issued on Magsaysay’s 50th birthday.  Click the image for several FDC options.

On August 31, 1957, the US Post Office issued an 8¢ stamp honoring Ramon Magsaysay, the first stamp in a new Champions of Liberty Series.

The stamp was issued just five months after Magsaysay, the seventh President of the Philippines, had died in a plane crash.  Magsaysay’s administration was noted for its freedom from corruption.  Under his direction, the Philippines joined the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization.  The Magsaysay stamp was issued on his birthday and was the largest US postage stamp issued up to that time.

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This Day in History… August 30, 1918

Posted on August 30, 2020 by MysticStamp

Happy Birthday, Ted Williams

US #4694 from the Major League Baseball All-Stars issue.

Baseball legend Theodore Samuel Williams was born on August 30, 1918, in San Diego, California. 

Williams first learned to throw a baseball when he was eight.  His uncle Saul taught him.  Saul had been a semi-professional player who once played against Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Joe Gordon in an exhibition game. 

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This Day in History… August 29, 1861

Posted on August 29, 2020 by MysticStamp

Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries 

US #2471 – The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was first built in 1845.  Part of the East Coast Lighthouses set.

On August 29, 1861, the first combined Union Army and Navy battle of the Civil War concluded at the Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries.

In the 19th century, trading vessels filled with goods from the Caribbean caught the Gulf Stream to travel North and sailed past the North Carolina shoreline.  The Outer Banks of North Carolina formed the perfect location to raid ships, and Cape Hatteras Lighthouse served as a lookout tower.  When Northern ships were spotted, raiders hiding in the calm waters of the sound would rush out and capture the ship.  The Confederates realized the importance of protecting this area and built four forts near the deepest inlets.  Fort Hatteras and Fort Clark were built on the most strategic location, Hatteras Inlet.

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This Day in History… August 28, 1830

Posted on August 28, 2020 by MysticStamp

Tom Thumb Proves the Power of Steam

US #1006 was issued for the 125th anniversary of the B&O Railroad charter.  It pictures the Tom Thumb race as well as a streamlined diesel train.

On August 28, 1830, the Tom Thumb steam locomotive impressed railroad officials during an impromptu race.

In the early days of the railroads, most railroads were generally tracks on roads.  Horses would pull wagons with special wheels designed to ride on the rails.  The first steam-powered locomotives were built in England and shipped to the US.  However, Americans soon began trying to develop their own steam locomotives.

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This Day in History… August 27, 1918

Posted on August 27, 2020 by MysticStamp

Battle of Ambos Nogales 

US #1157 was a joint-issue with Mexico honoring its independence from Spain.

On August 27, 1918, US and Mexican forces engaged in the Battle of Ambos Nogales, amid the tensions of the Mexican Revolution, World War I, and the Border War.

Along the border of the US and Mexico, International Street divided Ambos (“Both”) Nogales.  To the north was Nogales, Arizona, and to the south was Nogales, Sonora.  In 1918, residents of both towns generally got along and both benefitted from the smuggling of cigars, liquor, firearms, and cattle.

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This Day in History… August 26, 1920

Posted on August 26, 2020 by MysticStamp

The 19th Amendment 

US #1406 pictures suffragists on the left and a woman voting on the right.

On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment went into effect, granting women’s suffrage.

During colonial times, only property-owning adult males could vote.  Most women could not vote, although some colonies made exceptions for property-owning widows.  When the US Constitution was adopted in 1789, it didn’t clearly define who could vote.  Instead, states made that decision. New Jersey was the only one to allow women to vote, and that right was taken away in 1807.

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Posted in August 2020, This Day in History | 2 Comments