# 2869//3408 - 1994-2000 Classic Sheets, collection of 9

U.S. #2869//3408
1994-2000 Classic Sheets Series
Collection of 9

• Collection of nine 20-stamp sheets
• Sheets have info about each subject on the back of the stamps
• Includes the corrected version of the famed Legends of the West error sheet

Stamp Category:  Commemorative
Series:  Classic Sheets
Value:  29¢-33¢, rate for first-class mail
First Days of Issue:
         Legends of the West: October 18, 1994
         Civil War: June 29, 1995
         Comic Strip Classics: October 1, 1995
         Olympic Games: May 2, 1996
         Classic American Aircraft: July 19, 1997
         Four Centuries of American Art: August 27, 1998
         Insects and Spiders: October 1, 1999
         The Stars and Stripes: June 14, 2000
         Legends of Baseball: July 6, 2000
First Day Cities:  Tucson, AZ; Lawton, OK; Laramie, WY; Gettysburg, PA; Boca Raton, FL; Atlanta, GA; Dayton, OH; Santa Clara, CA; Indianapolis, IN; Baltimore, MD; Atlanta, GA
Quantity Issued:
         Legends of the West: 385,656,000
         Civil War: 300,000,000
         Comic Strip Classics: 300,000,000
         Olympic Games: 324,150,000
         Classic American Aircraft: 161,000,000
         Four Centuries of American Art: 80,000,000
         Insects and Spiders: 84,700,000
         The Stars and Stripes: 80,000,000
         Legends of Baseball: 225,000,000
Printed by:  Stamp Venturers, Banknote Corporation of America
Printing Method:  Photogravure, Lithographed
Format:  Panes of 20 in sheets of 120
Perforations:  
         Legends of the West: 10.2 x 10.1
         Civil War: 10.1
         Comic Strip Classics: 10.1
         Olympic Games: 10.1
         Classic American Aircraft: 10.1
         Four Centuries of American Art: 10.2
         Insects and Spiders: 11
         The Stars and Stripes: 10.5 x 11
         Legends of Baseball: Serpentine Die Cut 11.25

Why the stamps were issued:  The Classic Collection borne out of plans for stamps honoring “Western Americana.”  That idea became the Legends of the West sheet, and inspired the creation of this series.

About the stamp designs:  Each sheet in the series has the same 20-stamp format.  They all have broadly-defined Americana themes, exceptional artwork, a banner printed on the selvage of the sheet, and descriptive text on the back of each stamp. Additionally, postal cards with matching artwork were issued to coordinate with a few of the sheets.

About the printing process:  In order to include the text on the back of each stamp, it had to be printed under the gum, so that it would still be visible if a stamp was soaked off an envelope.  Because people would need to lick the stamps, the ink had to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration as non-toxic.

First Day Cities: 

         Legends of the West: The Laramie, Wyoming First Day ceremony was held at the University of Wyoming.  The Tucson, Arizona ceremony was held at the Old Tucson Studios, where the High Chaparral TV series and several Western movies had been filmed.  The Lawton, Oklahoma ceremony was held at Fort Sill, where Geronimo was buried.

         Civil War: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania – site of one the war’s most famous battles

         Comic Strip Classics: Boca Raton, Florida – home of the International Museum of Cartoon Art

         Olympic Games: Atlanta, Georgia – site of the 1996 Centennial Olympics

         Classic American Aircraft: Dayton, Ohio – home of the Wright Brothers, who are credited with the first successful powered flight

Four Centuries of American Art: Santa Clara, California

Insects and Spiders: Indianapolis, Indiana – at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, for National Stamp Collecting Month

The Stars and Stripes: Baltimore, Maryland – at the Fort McHenry National Monument

Legends of Baseball: Atlanta, Georgia – site of the 2000 All-Star Game

History the stamps represent: 

1994 29¢ Legends of the West (US #2869): This set pays tribute to 16 individuals and features four topic-oriented stamps as well. Each of the individuals honored played an important part in the amazing history of America.  This famous issue contained two mistakes made by the United States Postal Service and led to a string of events without precedent in the history of US stamp collecting.

One of the people to be featured on the sheet was black rodeo star Bill Pickett.  After the stamps were announced, but not officially issued, a radio reporter phoned Frank Phillips Jr., great-grandson of Bill Pickett, and asked him about the stamp. Phillips went to his local post office, looked at the design and recognized it as Ben Pickett – Bill’s brother and business associate. The stamp pictured the wrong man! That was the first mistake.

Phillips complained to the Postal Service and Postmaster General Marvin Runyon issued an order to recall and destroy the error stamps. Runyon also ordered new revised stamps be created – these are the corrected Legends of the West stamps (#2869).

But before the recall, 186 error sheets were sold by postal workers – before the official “first day of issue.” This was the second mistake. These error sheets were being resold for sums ranging from $3,000 to $15,000 each!

Several weeks later the US Postal Service announced that 150,000 error sheets would be sold at face value by means of a mail order lottery (US #2870). This unprecedented move was made with the permission of Frank Phillips Jr. so the Post Office could recover its printing cost and not lose money. Sales were limited to one per household. The remaining stamps were destroyed.

1995 32¢ Civil War (US #2975): The release of the 20 Civil War stamps marked the most extensive effort in the history of the US Postal Service to review and verify the historical accuracy of stamp subjects. Each of the 16 individuals and four battles featured were chosen from a master list of 50 subjects, which included presidents, generals, major battles, rank-and-file soldiers, women, African and Native Americans, and abolitionists. The goal of the USPS was to show the wide variety of people who participated in the Civil War.

1995 32¢ Comic Strip Classics (US #3000): Each of these 20 stamps features a comic strip classic. Daily and weekly newspapers have brought Americans cartoons since 1895. It is reported that 86 million adults and 17 million children in the US read the Sunday comics each week! In fact, comic strips are considered one of America's only indigenous art forms. The comic strip and its characters have popularized words and phrases, such as "I Yam Wot I Yam," from Popeye, and even the foods we eat, like the "Dagwood" sandwich from Blondie. Comics have become movies (Popeye), and Broadway Shows (Annie). This sheet honors comic strips created within the first 50 years of comics, from 1895 to 1945.

1996 32¢ Olympic Games (US #3068): Held in Atlanta, Georgia, the 1996 Olympic Summer Games marked the 100th anniversary of the modern Olympics. More than 11,000 athletes from 197 countries reached for excellence as they took to heart the Olympic motto, "Swifter, Higher, Stronger."

1997 32¢ Classic American Aircraft (US #3142): Planes representing the first fifty years of flight in America are featured on this sheet. Walter Boyne, retired US Air Force pilot and first director of the National Air and Space Museum, compiled the list of 20 planes. Boyne selected the subjects based on factors such as their importance to aviation, public perception, and distinctive appearance.

1998 32¢ Four Centuries of American Art (US #3236): This pane features twenty of the most important and famous works of art produced in the last 400 years. It spans the years from Colonial America to abstract art. Artists featured include naturalist John James Audubon, realist Winslow Homer, and Grant Wood, whose famous American Gothic is pictured.

1998 33¢ Insects and Spiders (US #3351): This colorful sheet features 16 insects and four spiders. The species of insects and spiders on the stamps were chosen because of their educational value and interest to children. The species represent the wide range of colors, lifestyles, and behaviors exhibited by these amazing creatures.

1999 33¢ The Stars and Stripes (US #3403): This set of 20 stamps chronicles the development of the American flag from Colonial times to the present. Each flag has an interesting story behind it. For example, the design of the Francis Hopkinson flag was once attributed to Betsy Ross. Historians now believe this often-told tale is untrue. Adopted on June 14, 1777, the birthday of the Hopkinson flag is celebrated each year as Flag Day. This was the first flag to feature both the stars and stripes in its design.

2000 33¢ Legends of Baseball (US #3408): The Legends of Baseball issue honors 20 baseball greats who were named to the "All-Century Team," announced after the 1999 season. Votes from fans, as well as members of a special panel, selected the team.  The stamps include such greats as Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play Major League Baseball, home run hitter Babe Ruth, and “The Iron Horse” Lou Gehrig who played 2,130 consecutive games.