Until , the postage stamp price was so expensive that it crippled the postal service. Only a few people could afford the high postal rates. Luckily, the US Congress ordered that all American provisional stamps from the year onwards will have a uniform postage stamp price. However, the provisional stamps were only valid at the post office they were issued. Did you know who were the first Americans depicted on US stamps? The official US postage stamps that were released on July 1, were warmly received by the American public.
Over 3, , pieces of the 5c American stamp were sold. The 10c US stamps were also produced in , pieces. However, the first definitives in the history of the US postage stamps did not have perforation marks. Adapting perforation marks on US post stamps were introduced in the late s. The first perforated American postage stamps were also issued in new denominations of 24c, 30c, and 90c. The rare usage of envelopes was another reason that delayed the need for stamps or other methods to confirm the payment of the postal fees.
At these times, if you wanted to send a letter to someone, all you had to do is to protect your privacy was to fold the letter up or roll it in case of parchments, and then you seal it shut with a piece of rope, ribbon, or wax. The wax hardens in a specific way to make the letter difficult to be opened without showing traces of noticeable tampering in the seal. When the English Postal System first started, there was no specific way to pay for the letters sent.
However, due to the higher price for everything including delivering these letters, many people refused to accept the letter when they receive it in order to avoid paying for it. In fact, some people developed a smart way to cheat the English postal system, in which they would use a secret language or signs written on the outer part of the letter that conveyed the meaning of the message.
This created a problem for the English postal service since these cheating techniques started growing more with time. As a result, the English postal service had to turn all letters into prepaid mail only. From that moment after, all mail had to be paid for prior to being sent, this required a method to ensure the payment on the letter. In most cases, prepaid letters were used in specific situations like urgent letters, and knowing the financial status of the receiving end.
However, to ensure that postage fees have been paid on a prepaid letter, several ideas were adopted by different people. Consequently, crediting one person only for inventing stamps would be a mistake. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads.
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Inventions Expert. Mary Bellis covered inventions and inventors for ThoughtCo for 18 years. She is known for her independent films and documentaries, including one about Alexander Graham Bell. Cite this Article Format. Bellis, Mary. Since rates at that time were very high, many people refused to accept letters. In fact, many people developed secret codes by which they could cheat the postal services.
They would place secret marks on the outside of the letter that conveyed their message and all the addressee had to do was read the secret message, refuse to accept the letter, and thus not have to pay for it. Mainly for this reason, postal services turned to a means of prepaying postage. In Sir Rowland Hill, the British Postmaster General, introduced the "Post Office Reforms" whereby the mail could go anywhere in the British Isles at the same rate a penny a half-ounce ; the postage was to be paid by the sender -- not the addressee; and payment was receipted by placing a small piece of colored paper on the outside of the letter -- THE STAMP!
Of course Hill's proposal was heavily debated for a few years, but after serious discussion the change was enacted and instituted in Thus on May 6, first date of valid use the first government-printed postage stamps were born.
Sir Rowland Hill himself designed the first stamp which cost one penny and bore the profile of Queen Victoria. Because the stamp was printed in black, the 1-cent stamp soon became known as the "Penny Black" -- the world's most popular stamp.
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