History itself can be tracked on postcards, from historical buildings, famous people, art, holidays and more. The First Postage Stamp
1840
The Penny Black which was issued in England in 1840 is the world's first adhesive postage stamp. The stamp has a portrait of Queen Victoria, is primarily black in color and is one cent, so it has become to be known as the Penny Black.
Before 1840 postage rates varied as they were dependent on how many sheets of paper were used and how far the distance sent. The postage was also not paid by the sender, but by the receiver. Postage was at that time quite expensive and many times the receivers refused the deliveries.
In 1837 the Postmaster General of England, Sir Rowland Hill, proposed several different reforms of the postal system including postage being paid by the sender, a set rate anywhere in England and proof of prepayment of the postage.
Sir Hill's proposed systems were passed by Parliament in 1839, called the Penny Postage Act and shortly thereafter the first Penny Black was issued. The first Penny Black for sold on May 1st, 1840. There was also a two penny stamp, which was identical with the exception of it was blue in color. The two cent stamp was issued for any mail weighing more than 1/2 an ounce. The first blue two cent stamp was sold on May 8th, 1840.
To prevent forgery, the stamps had watermarks of a small crown on the back and they were printed on large sheets each containing 240 stamps. They were cut apart by scissors until perforated stamps were issued in 1854.
For proof of payment and that the stamp had been used, the cancellation mark came to be. Originally the cancellation mark was made with black ink, but being hard to see on a black stamp it was later changed to red.
Adhered postage stamps proved to be very popular and soon many other countries in Europe began producing stamps. The first postage stamp in the United States was issued in 1847. The first two stamps were five and ten cents depicting Benjamin Franklin on the five cent stamp and George Washington on the ten cent stamp.