1948 80c Stock Transfer Stamp, Bright Green

Scott #RD270 is an 80-cent bright green Stock Transfer revenue stamp from the Series 1948 issue, featuring a portrait of Roger B. Taney, the fifth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. The "Series 1948" overprint in black identifies this stamp as part of the annual reissue of the Stock Transfer series, which was printed each year with an updated series designation. Stock Transfer stamps were issued to collect a federal tax on the sale, transfer, or delivery of shares of stock and other securities, and were affixed to the documentation accompanying those transactions.

Roger B. Taney served as Chief Justice from 1836 until his death in 1864, making his the longest tenure of any Chief Justice in the 19th century. He is best remembered — and most condemned — for writing the majority opinion in the 1857 Dred Scott decision, in which the Supreme Court ruled that African Americans could not be U.S. citizens and had no right to sue in federal court. The ruling also struck down the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Historians widely regard it as the worst decision in Supreme Court history, and it helped push the country toward Civil War. The fact that Taney's portrait appears on a U.S. revenue stamp issued well into the 20th century reflects how long it took for his legacy to be fully reckoned with.

Stock Transfer stamps were in use from 1918 through 1967, when the federal stock transfer tax was finally repealed. The annual Series overprints — running through the 1940s and 1950s — created distinct varieties for each year, giving collectors a ready-made area of specialization within this revenue category.