# 1907 - 1981 18c Transportation Series: Surrey, 1890s
1981 18¢ Surrey
Transportation Series
City: Notch, MO
Printed By: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Start Of The Transportation Series
Prior to the stamp's issue, the USPS issued a brief announcement for the stamp saying it would be printed in black ink, with few other details. However, the actual stamp was printed in brown ink.
The stamp was issued quietly on May 18, 1981, without the fanfare many issues received. It also broke an 80-year-old custom. For the first time in U.S. history, a coil stamp featured its own unique design rather than simply copying that of the current definitive stamp. Over 50 more coil stamps would be issued over the course of the next 15 years, each picturing a different mode of transportation. All of these were types of transportation used since American independence.
One aspect of the Transportation stamps that is particularly interesting is the use of tiny plate numbers at the bottom of some stamps. These Plate Number Coils (PNCs) were printed at intervals of 24, 48, or 52 stamps, varying by which press was used.
Scott Catalog separates the Transportation stamps into four groups. The stamps in the first group (#1897-1908) generally have the denomination in small type with a "c" next to it. These stamps were printed on the Cottrell rotary press, which joined together two plates to make a sleeve. The gaps between these plates created depressions where ink would collect and create joint lines on the stamps. Later issues were printed on a different press and didn't have these joint lines.
Click here to view all the Transportation stamps.
1981 18¢ Surrey
Transportation Series
City: Notch, MO
Printed By: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Start Of The Transportation Series
Prior to the stamp's issue, the USPS issued a brief announcement for the stamp saying it would be printed in black ink, with few other details. However, the actual stamp was printed in brown ink.
The stamp was issued quietly on May 18, 1981, without the fanfare many issues received. It also broke an 80-year-old custom. For the first time in U.S. history, a coil stamp featured its own unique design rather than simply copying that of the current definitive stamp. Over 50 more coil stamps would be issued over the course of the next 15 years, each picturing a different mode of transportation. All of these were types of transportation used since American independence.
One aspect of the Transportation stamps that is particularly interesting is the use of tiny plate numbers at the bottom of some stamps. These Plate Number Coils (PNCs) were printed at intervals of 24, 48, or 52 stamps, varying by which press was used.
Scott Catalog separates the Transportation stamps into four groups. The stamps in the first group (#1897-1908) generally have the denomination in small type with a "c" next to it. These stamps were printed on the Cottrell rotary press, which joined together two plates to make a sleeve. The gaps between these plates created depressions where ink would collect and create joint lines on the stamps. Later issues were printed on a different press and didn't have these joint lines.
Click here to view all the Transportation stamps.