U.S. #1869
1985 50¢ Chester W. Nimitz
Great Americans
- 20th stamp in the Great Americans Series; tenth 50¢ US stamp
- 1st stamp to honor a World War II naval hero
- Issued two days before Nimitz’s 100th birthday
Stamp Category: Definitive
Series: Great Americans
Value: 50¢; for heavy mailings
First Day of Issue: February 22, 1985
First Day City: Fredericksburg, Texas
Quantity Issued: 100,500,000
Printed by: Bureau of Engraving & Printing
Printing Method: Engraved
Format: Panes of 100
Perforations: 11
Color: Brown
Why the stamp was issued: While the stamp didn’t fill a specific postal rate, the USPS said was intended to help make postage on heavier mailings. It was the tenth US stamp ever to bear the 50¢ denomination. The first had been an 1893 Columbian.
Calls for a stamp honoring Nimitz had begun several years before the stamp was issued. Among those calling for the stamp were the Nimitz Foundation, the American Battleship Association, and the many schools named in his honor. The effort also included in a large-scale letter writing campaign and signed petition.
About the stamp design: This was the second US stamp design for artist Christopher Calle. He based his portrait on multiple photos of the US naval admiral.
First Day City: The First Day ceremony for this stamp was held at the Nimitz Steamboat Hotel at the Nimitz State Historical Park in Fredericksburg, Texas. The park centers around the hotel, which was built by his grandfather. The Japanese respected Nimitz, saying he had magokoro – a “sincere heart.” The people of Japan raised funds to build a traditional Japanese garden within the park. Once the funds were raised, a group of Japanese gardeners came to the park and spent months working on the water and floral features of the “Garden of Peace.”
Unusual fact about this stamp: Misperfed stamps have been found with the perforations cutting into Nimitz’s portrait.
About the Great Americans Series: The Great Americans Series was created to replace the Americana Series. The new series would be characterized by a standard definitive size, simple design, and monochromatic colors.
This simple design included a portrait, “USA,” the denomination, the person’s name, and in some cases, their occupation or reason for recognition. The first stamp in the new series was issued on December 27, 1980. It honored Sequoyah and fulfilled the new international postcard rate that would go into effect in January 1981.
The Great Americans Series would honor a wider range of people than the previous Prominent Americans and Liberty Series. While those series mainly honored presidents and politicians, the Great Americans Series featured people from many fields and ethnicities. They were individuals who were leaders in education, the military, literature, the arts, and human and civil rights. Plus, while the previous series only honored a few women, the Great Americans featured 15 women. This was also the first definitive series to honor Native Americans, with five stamps.
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) produced most of the stamps, but private firms printed some. Several stamps saw multiple printings. The result was many different varieties, with tagging being the key to understanding them. Though there were also differences in perforations, gum, paper, and ink color.
The final stamp in the series was issued on July 17, 1999, honoring Justin S. Morrill. Spanning 20 years, the Great Americans was the longest-running US definitive series. It was also the largest series of face-different stamps, with a total of 63.
Click here for all the individual stamps and click here for the complete series.
History the stamp represents: Chester William Nimitz was born on February 24, 1885, in Fredericksburg, Texas.
Nimitz had early aspirations to join the Army, applying to West Point while still in high school. No spots were available, so he entered the Naval Academy instead. Excelling in mathematics and graduating with distinction (cumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher) in 1905, Nimitz joined the crew of the USS Ohio for service in the Far East. Two years later, he was given command of the USS Panay, the Decatur, and then the Denver.
After returning to the US, Nimitz began commanding submarines in 1909. After serving aboard the E-1, he was awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal for rescuing one of his crewmen from drowning. He eventually became one of the nation’s leading authorities on submarines. After helping build a submarine base in Pearl Harbor in 1920, Nimitz attended the Naval War College. There, he studied the logistics of a possible Pacific Ocean war – knowledge that would prove quite useful two decades later.
After the December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Nimitz was placed in charge of the Pacific Fleet. Nimitz was given operational control over all Allied units – air, land, and sea – in the strategic Pacific Ocean Areas. He deployed ships and men as soon as they became available, quickly putting the US on the offensive. He quickly faced critical shortages of ships, planes, and supplies, though. Nimitz rebuilt the fleet’s strength and engaged in a patient strategy of “island hopping,” which bypassed small Japanese bases to focus on those more crucial. The plan saved time and lives, and ultimately assured the United States of victory.
In this role, Nimitz was widely regarded for both his tactical skills and strong leadership. He’s been applauded for his ability to select strong officers and mold them into able leaders, like William F. Halsey Jr. and Raymond A. Spruance. It’s been said he had a “sense of inner balance and calm that steadied those around him.”
In 1944, an act of Congress established the rank of fleet admiral, the highest grade in the United States Navy. The following day, President Roosevelt appointed Nimitz to the position. Under his leadership, the US defeated the Japanese in key battles including Coral Sea, Midway, and the Solomon Islands. Decisive victories included the Battles of the Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf, along with the capture of Saipan, Guam, and Tinian. Successful assaults on Iwo Jima and Okinawa helped bring the war to an end. Nimitz represented the US and signed the official documents when Japan formally surrendered.
After the war was over, Nimitz oversaw the Navy’s downsizing, helping to find the organization’s place in peacetime. He also worked to restore goodwill with Japan by fundraising to help rebuild the Japanese battleship, Mikasa. He went on to serve as regent of the University of California before his death on February 20, 1966. In 1972, his daughter Catherine Nimitz christened the USS Nimitz, an aircraft carrier and the lead ship of its class.
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