Maps: Alaska and Russia

Tags

Alaska, Europe, North America, Russia, United States

Today, on the anniversary of Alaskan statehood, I will share with you my first state map card from that lovely state:

This map was sent to me by Patsy through the Postcrossing forum. Patsy lives in Juneau, the capital, which is near the border with Canada. There are no roads into or out of Juneau, one must take a boat or plane to get to the town from outside.

Alaska became a U.S. state in 1959. Originally, the United States bought the land from Russia in the 19th century. And today I also have a map of Russia to share!

This card was sent by Audrey_Zoe in Russia. It is another fine addition to my growing country map collection.

And the card came with new stamps:

That’s all for today!

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Mississippi, the Magnolia State

Tags

Mississippi, North America, United States

Today is the 197th anniversary of Mississippi’s admission to the United States. I have two cards to share to commemorate this anniversary:

The first is a map, the first Mississippi map card I have for my map card collection.

And the second is a card of Mississippi’s flag, which was adopted in 1894. The flag is the only U.S. flag to still include the Confederate flag’s saltire. A new flag was proposed in 2001, which would have replaced the saltire with a blue canton with 20 stars. However, a referendum to change the flag was defeated by Mississippi voters.

These cards came from cognac on the Postcrossing forum this summer.

Forts & Charles Pinckney

Tags

North America, South Carolina, United States

Today I have three cards, two forts that are National Monuments, and a National Historic Site, all from darkestperu on the Postcrossing forum.

First is the Charles Pinckney National Historic Site in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Charles Pinckney was one of the framers of the U.S. Constitution in the 18th century; he later went on to be the Governor of South Carolina as well as a U.S. Senator and member of the House of Representatives. The site preserves a portion of his farm, though the house shown here was actually built in 1828, four years after he died. Today is the 190th anniversary of Pinckney’s death.

Next is Fort Frederica National Monument, located on St. Simon’s Island in the state of Georgia. The fort was built between 1736 and 1748 to protect the British colony from the Spanish. The fort was named after Frederick, who was then the Prince of Wales. The fort and nearby town were abandoned in the 1750s and all that remains today are ruins.

And finally, Fort Moultrie, which is part of the Fort Sumter National Monument. The fort was built to protect the city of Charleston. It was built out of palmetto logs, which inspired the flag and nickname of South Carolina, The Palmetto State. The writer Edgar Allen Poe was stationed at this fort in 1827 and served there for two years as an artificer, one who prepared artillery shells. The fort continued to be used for defense through World War II and was finally decommissioned in 1947.

Darkestperu used some great stamps from the U.S. Postal Service that were released this year:

These first two are from the Songbirds series released in April, 2014.

And this stamp is from the Vintage Circus Poster series released in May.

An Artistic Interlude

Tags

Europe, Germany, Nebraska, Netherlands, North America, United States

Today I have a collection of art cards to share with you.

First is this Postcrossing card from Germany. It shows some artwork from Sandro Botticelli, the early Renaissance painter.

Second is another Postcrossing card from Germany, showing a painting by the 19th century French artist, Pierre Renoir. Renoir is one of my favorite artists. The back of the card says that the title of the work is “Schlafende” or “Sleeping” and that it was painted in 1880.

Next is a card sent from a Dutch Postcrosser. The card shows a painting called “Conversations” by Nguyen Thanh Binh. This card was printed by IKEA, which has surprisingly nice postcards that don’t even require assembly.

And finally, Grant Wood’s classic painting “American Gothic,” painted in 1930. This card was sent by Jennifer in Nebraska, who had visited the American Gothic House in Iowa.

Just one new stamp, showing Schloss Stolzenfels am Rhein in Germany:

Bridges from Around the World

Tags

Arkansas, Canada, Europe, North America, South Carolina, Ukraine, United States

Today I have a selection of bridge postcards from around the world: two from the United States, one from Canada, and one from Ukraine:

First is this card of the Ravenel Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina. I got this card from a Postcrossing forum swap, but I am not sure who sent it because it apparently got into the mailbox before the sender wrote anything other than “Hi Kate!” I think the sender meant to write more, but accidentally sent it too early.

This second card comes from Arkansas as an official Postcrossing card. It shows the Broadway Bridge that connects Little Rock and North Little Rock.

The third card comes as a swap from Jason in Canada, who recently became a follower of the blog. Hi, Jason! It shows the Capilano suspension bridge in British Columbia. The bridge is 200 feet (61 meters) above the Capilano River. The first bridge here was built in 1889 and then replaced in 1903. Today about 800,000 people visit the bridge each year.

And finally, there is this Postcrossing card from Ukraine. In the background there are the Carpathian mountains. The card says that this spot is the geographical center of Europe.

The only new stamps came on Jason’s card:

On the left is a 1994 stamp celebrating 100 years of the Grey Cup, the championship game of the Canadian Football League. On the right is a 1982 stamp for the International Philatelic Youth Exhibition.

Quebec: flag, map, and UNESCO

Tags

Canada, North America, Quebec

Today I have three cards from the Canadian province of Quebec, from Postcrossing forum members emiithebear and cheshirekat:

First is this view of the Château Frontenac and Vieux-Quebec, the old town of Quebec City. Quebec City is the capital of the province. The Château is the building with the green copper roof. It dominates the skyline of the city, especially when the city is viewed from the other side, from the St. Lawrence River. Vieux-Quebec has been on the UNESCO list since 1985.

Next, this is the flag of the province of Quebec. The flag is called the fleurdelisé, after the four fleur de lise on it. The flag was adopted in 1948, the first provincial flag officially adopted in Canada.

And finally, a map of the province of Quebec. Most of the population lives in the south, near the St. Lawrence River. In the north is the region of Nunavik, where Quebec’s Inuit population lives. This is where the village of Ivujivik is, the northernmost settlement in any Canadian province. There are no roads that link Nunavik to southern Quebec. I am guessing that the weather is too bad and there is too much snow and ice.

Emiithebear used some new stamps on the cards of Quebec City and the map:

The rose stamp on the bottom is new stamp from April 2014, issued along with a white rose stamp. The stamp on top shows Franklin the Turtle, a children’s book character. This stamp was released in May 2012. The Franklin stamp is the first in a series of children’s literature stamps.

UNESCO: Glacier Bay, Alaska

Tags

Alaska, North America, United States

Another UNESCO site to check off my list: Glacier Bay, Alaska. This time, with two cards that came just a few days apart.

First, this view of Glacier Bay comes from Postcrossing forum member Cognac in Florida. It shows Margerie Glacier, a 21 mile (34 km) long glacier in the bay. It was named after the French geographer Emmanuel de Margerie.

This second card comes from my friend and classmate, Josh, who is in Alaska working for the summer. It’s hard to tell from the picture, but the card is covered in glitter. Wherever there is snow, there is glitter. Josh writes that he bets I didn’t know that the glaciers had been covered in glitter to “beautify” the park and attract more tourists.

Many thanks to Cognac and Josh for sending these great cards!

Stash clearing: Animals from the Americas

Tags

Brazil, Canada, North America, South America, United States

And now the third and final installment of my animal card stash clearing series. First we saw animals from Europe, then animals from Asia. Today it is time for animals from the Americas!

This card comes from Brazil as an official Postcrossing card. It says (roughly) “People faithful to their responsibility do not eat those with eyes.”

This card comes from Glenn in Canada, who included some stamps and a note about the 100th anniversary of the Calgary Stampede. Shown here is the horse and chuck wagon race. Here are the Calgary Stampede stamps:

This card shows some Florida manatees and comes from Cognac on the Postcrossing forum.

This card from the Saint Louis Zoo shows parent and child giraffes. It was sent by Julie via the Postcrossing forum.

Finally, this card is an official Postcrossing card from the United States. My favorite part of the card is the assortment of pretty stamps that the sender used:

The sender tried to get some of all of my favorites in the stamps: owls, elephants, cherry blossoms, and sheep!

That’s all for the stash clearing animal series!

Four New State Maps

Tags

Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada, North America, North Dakota, United States

Today I have four new map cards for my U.S. map card collection, all thanks to Erin via the Postcrossing forum. Now I have only four missing state map cards: Rhode Island, Alaska, Maine, and Kansas.

Erin has been to all 50 states, with North Dakota being the last one she hadn’t visited until a recent road trip (where she bought the North Dakota map card).

Now that I am nearly finished with collecting the maps, I have started on collecting state flag cards. So far I have only four.

Erin used unique stamps on the cards:

From left to right: George Washington Carver, Elizabeth Blackwell (first woman physician), and a 13¢ stamp of a kitten and a puppy

Coral Reefs 15¢ (depicting Chalice Coral in American Samoa); John McCormack 20¢

This is the postcard rate (34¢) stamp issued this year, depicting a hummingbird.

And finally, a 10¢ stamp from 1975 depicting the Apollo and Soyuz space missions, and a 20¢ stamp honoring Eleanor Roosevelt.

UNESCO in the United States

Tags

Arizona, history, Illinois, North America, Pennsylvania, United States

Today I have three American UNESCO sites, one new to my UNESCO collection.

First, the new UNESCO card! This card shows the Cahokia Mounds in Illinois. In the 11th century, Cahokia was a large city — one of the largest cities in the world. It was built and inhabited by the native peoples who were part of the Mississippian culture. The tallest mound at the site is Monk’s Mound, which is 100 feet (30 meters) high.

The  site was listed on the UNESCO list in 1982. The card was sent by Glisten on the Postcrossing forum.

The next card comes as an official Postcrossing card. It shows the Grand Canyon in Arizona, a UNESCO site since 1979.

And finally, another official Postcrossing card showing Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Independence Hall was the site where the the Declaration of Independence was signed, and where the Constitution of the United States was debated on and drafted. The Hall was also listed as a UNESCO site in 1979.

Interestingly, both of the official Postcrossing cards used the same stamp:

This stamp was released in 2013 to commemorate the 1963 March on Washington, an important event during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.

And Glisten used this new 2014 stamp depicting some stylized stars and stripes.