1934 NATIONAL PARK STAMPS
Mt. Ranier 3¢ Stamp
Mt. Ranier National Park
3¢ stamp, violet, Mirror Lake, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
This stamp was released on August 3, 1934, at post offices in Longmire, Washington, and Washington, DC. The stamp features a photograph by Asahel Curtis that shows Mount Rainier with Mirror Lake in the foreground. The mountain peak and surrounding trees are reflected in the lake.
The horizontal three-cent stamp is printed with purple ink and required eight different printing plates to print 85 million stamps.
Mount Rainier National Park was established in Washington State in 1899. Mount Rainier is an active volcano that poses significant potential danger to the heavily populated areas around it.
1934 National Park Stamps
The U.S. Interior Department designated 1934 as National Parks Year. The US Postal Service issued a series of 10 stamps to promote national parks and encourage domestic tourism. The stamps were the first American commemoratives that were not connected to a historical event, technological achievement, or exposition — including the first US postage stamp designed by a woman.
Described as "the greatest campaign ever launched by the federal government to promote the scenic wonders of the United States," the national park stamps became one of the most recognized series of US stamps. Despite being in the middle of the Great Depression, over one billion of the 10 national park stamps were printed in under two years.
This stamp series along with the WPA Posters of the time both personified the "See America First" campaign, where the message evoked local travel as patriotic and a cornerstone of national identity.
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