# 1633 - 1976 13c State Flags: Delaware

U.S. 1633
1976 Delaware State Flag
State Flags
American Bicentennial Series

• First time a sheet 50 had all different stamp designs
• Part of the American Bicentennial Series
  
  

Stamp Category: Commemorative
Series:  American Bicentennial Series
Value: 13¢ First-class postage rate
First Day of Issue: February 23, 1976
First Day City(s):  Washington, DC
Quantity Issued: 8,720,100 (panes of 50)
Printed by: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Printing Method:  Photogravure
Format: Sheet of 50
Perforations:  11


Why the stamp was issued:  The United States Postal Service celebrated the American Bicentennial with a full pane of the Union’s fifty state flags.


About the stamp design:
    This stamp pictures the flag of Delaware. Despite its status as the first state of the Union, Delaware didn’t have an official state flag until July 24, 1913. The state flag of Delaware has a buff-colored diamond on a colonial blue background, representing General George Washington’s uniform.

    The diamond is a reference to an early nickname, The Diamond State, because of Delaware’s small size and great value. Inside the diamond is the Delaware coat of arms. A farmer and soldier hold up a shield with a wavy blue line (representing the Delaware River), a cow, wheat, and corn (references to the state’s history in livestock and agriculture), and a boat (signifying the state’s commercial and shipping history).


About the printing process: 
    Printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing on their seven-color Andreotti gravure press (601) which was their work horse for multicolored stamps.


About the American Bicentennial Series: 
    In the 1970s, America celebrated its 200th anniversary with hundreds of national events commemorating the heroes and historic events that led to our nation’s independence from Great Britain.  The U.S. Postal Service issued 113 commemorative stamps over a six-year period in honor of the U.S. bicentennial, beginning with the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission Emblem stamp (U.S. #1432). As a group, the Bicentennial Series chronicles one of our nation’s most important chapters, and remembers the events and patriots who made the U.S. a world model for liberty.

    Several of the stamps honored colonial life – craftsmen and communication.  Other stamps honored important battles including Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, and Saratoga.  Significant events such as the Boston Tea Party, the meeting of the First Continental Congress, and the Declaration of Independence were featured as well.  The stamps also honored many significant people such as George Washington, Sybil Ludington, Salem Poor, and the Marquis de Lafayette.

    Many of the stamps feature classic artwork.  For instance, the set of four souvenir sheets picture important events recreated by noted artists such as John Trumbull.  The Bicentennial Series also includes an important US postal first – the first 50-stamp se-tenant – featuring all 50 state flags.  The format proved to be popular with collectors, and has been repeated many times since.

    The American Bicentennial Series is packed with important US history – it tells the story of our nation’s fight for independence through stamps.


History the stamp represents: 
    On December 7, 1787, Delaware was the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, making it America’s first state.

    Delaware’s flag features a diamond, a reference to the nickname The Diamond State, because of its small size and great value.

    The British captured all of New Netherland in 1664. Delaware was made part of the colony of New York. In 1682, a year after William Penn founded Pennsylvania, it was made part of that colony. Delaware became known as the Three Lower Counties, because it was “down” the Delaware River from Pennsylvania. As Pennsylvania grew, Delaware asked Penn to grant them a separate legislature, which he did in 1704. However, Pennsylvania governors ruled Delaware until the American Revolutionary War.

    Delaware signed the Articles of Confederation (the forerunner to the U.S. Constitution) on February 22, 1779. However, the state’s leaders were not satisfied with the document. Two leaders, John Dickinson and George Read, helped draft a constitution with a stronger body of laws. On December 7, 1787, Delaware voted unanimously to ratify the United States Constitution and became America’s first state. Delaware adopted a new state constitution in 1792. At that time it changed its official name from Delaware State to the State of Delaware.