Today's #stampoftheday, which I'll describe at some point in this post, has me thinking about the rules we establish when we set a challenge for ourselves. I'm thinking about it because I've had to decide which rules apply - and in what way - for today's offering. Some background: When I started this #stampoftheday "misadventure" in …
Topic: Historical Figures & Events
Delving into the people and events that shaped history
On a strange day when it's hard to know how to react to the news, it's heartening that the #stampoftheday project makes me pause and ponder Mahatma Gandhi, who was born on October 2, 1869 and who appeared on the 10th Champions of Liberty stamp, which was issued in January 1961. Gandhi, of course, employed nonviolent …
Edgar Allan Poe, author of "The Masque the Red Death", makes a bizarrely timely appearance as today's #stampoftheday. Poe, who is known today for his chilling tales of horror and haunting poems, was featured on a 3-cent stamp issued on October 7, 1949, which was the 100th anniversary of his death. This choice presents two immediately …
Once upon a time, in a parallel American universe, there was an accidental president who was expected to reflect the worst of his country's politics, but instead embraced professional, non-partisan governance. The accidental president was Chester Alan Arthur, who is the subject of today's #stampoftheday because he was born on October 5, 1829. He's pictured on …
Stifled in his job in Boston (and probably chafing at the city's restrictive culture), a young man moves to New York, where he thinks he can find a job (and probably enjoy a less restrictive culture). This story (and its opposite) is a familiar one for almost everyone I know in greater Boston. But while our …
Does anyone still learn - or use - Morse Code anymore? I ask because Samuel F.B. Morse, the who is (incorrectly) credited with inventing the telegraph, is the subject of today's #stampoftheday, a 2-cent stamp issued on October 7, 1940 as part a series of 35 stamps honoring "Great Americans." Born in Charlestown, MA Morse attended …
Today's #stampoftheday honors a pianist, a composer, a prime minister, a political activist, a philanthropist, and a noted vintner. Amazingly, though, they're all the same person, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, who, among other things was prime minister of Poland, a concert pianist who once packed Madison Square Garden and is still the only Pole to have …
In this time, when we get frustrated if an email doesn't appear within a few seconds, today's #stampoftheday reminds us that communicating over long distances used to take days, even months. In doing so, it also underscores the importance of a functioning and timely postal system that hopefully will be deliver mail-in ballots in a …
Although she died almost 60 years, Eleanor Roosevelt still offers important wisdom and guidance for those trying to address our current concerns. Roosevelt, who was born on October 11, 1884, was pictured on today's #stampoftheday, a 5-cent stamp issued in October 1963, about 11 months after she died. Roosevelt's story has been told by many people …