© 2025 USPS
On July 23, 2025, in Washington, DC, the United States Postal Service® will issue the 250 Years of Delivering stamps (Forever® priced at the First-Class Mail® rate), in 20 designs, in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of 20 stamps (Item 487100). These stamps will go on sale nationwide July 23, 2025, and must not be sold or canceled before the first-day-of-issue. The 250 Years of Delivering commemorative pane of 20 stamps must not be split and the stamps must not be sold individually.
Issued to celebrate a major U.S. Postal Service anniversary, 250 Years of Delivering is an illustrated pane of 20 interconnected stamps representing the ubiquitous presence of USPS® throughout the years and the vital role the postal system has played in American life since 1775. The artwork, created by noted artist Chris Ware, shows a bird’s-eye view of a bustling town. Each individual stamp is a frame of sequential art that tells the story of a mail carrier’s daily journey as she walks her route through four seasons. The artwork contains numerous icons representing the Postal Service. On the pane’s verso, text details these items and challenges the game-player to find them. Art director Antonio Alcalá designed the stamps with Chris Ware.
Stamp Fulfillment Services will make an automatic push distribution to Post Offices of a quantity to cover approximately 30 days of sales. Distribution quantities for the automatic push distribution are available by logging on to SFS Web at sfsweb.usps.gov/sfsweb. Post Offices may begin ordering stamps before the first-day-of-issue through SFS Web; offices should also check the amount they will receive on their automatic push distribution.
Only the following pictorial postmark is permitted for 250 Years of Delivering stamps. The word “Station” or the abbreviation “STA” is required somewhere in the design because it will be a temporary station. Use of any image other than the following special pictorial image is prohibited.
To finalize the 250 Years of Delivering stamps pictorial postmark art, insert the date, city, state, and ZIP Code™ of the physical location of your event adjacent to the stamp image. Overall dimensions of the pictorial postmark must not exceed 4 inches (horizontally) by 2 inches (vertically). Collectors prefer the dimensions 3-1/2 inches by 1 inch.
The Postal Service™ must make all special postmarks known to collectors through advance publicity in the Postal Bulletin. Therefore, all special dedication cancellations must be reported to Stamp Services four weeks before the event using PS Form 413, Pictorial Postmark Announcement/Report. To get a copy of the form, go to blue.usps.gov/formmgmt/forms/ps413.pdf.
Customers have 120 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office™ or at The Postal Store® website at usps.com/shop. They must affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:
FDOI – 250 Years of Delivering Stamps
USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services
8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64144-9900
After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service™ will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark up to a quantity of 50. There is a 5-cent charge for each additional postmark over 50. All orders must be postmarked by November 23, 2025.
The Postal Service also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the USA Philatelic catalog and online at usps.com/shop. Customers may register online at usps.com/philatelic to receive a free USA Philatelic catalog.
Locally produced items are not authorized. Only merchandise that has been approved and assigned an item number by Headquarters Retail Marketing may be produced and sold.
Issue:
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250 Years of Delivering Stamps
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Item Number:
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487100
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Denomination &
Type of Issue:
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First-Class Mail Forever
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Format:
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Pane of 20 (20 designs)
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Series:
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N/A
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Issue Date & City:
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July 23, 2025, Washington, DC 20066
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Art Director:
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Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
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Designer:
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Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
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Designer:
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Chris Ware, Riverside, IL
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Artist:
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Chris Ware, Riverside, IL
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Modeler:
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Joseph Sheeran
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Manufacturing Process:
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Offset
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Printer:
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Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU)
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Press Type:
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Muller A76
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Stamps per Pane:
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20
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Print Quantity:
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25,000,000
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Paper Type:
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Nonphosphored Type III, Block Tag
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Adhesive Type:
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Pressure-sensitive
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Stamp Orientation:
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Vertical
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Image Area (w x h):
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0.8400 x 1.4200 in. / 21.3360 x
36.0680 mm.
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Stamp Size (w x h):
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0.9800 x 1.5600 in. / 24.8920 x
39.6240 mm.
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Full Pane Size (w x h):
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5.7500 x 7.5000 in. / 146.0500 x
190.5000 mm.
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Colors:
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Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black
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Plate Size:
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240 stamps per revolution
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Plate Number:
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“P” followed by four (4) single digits
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Marginal Markings:
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Front:
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Header: 250 YEARS OF DELIVERING • Plate number in bottom two corners
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Back:
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250 YEARS OF DELIVERING • Descriptive text • Two barcodes (487100) • Plate position diagram (6) • Promotional text • USPS.com/stamps • © 2025 USPS • USPS logo
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— Stamp Services,
Marketing, 6-26-25
