This stamp set commemorates the beauty and majesty of the United States through 20 captivating images that visually represent one of the nation’s most beloved songs, “America the Beautiful.” From Bailey Island on the coast of Maine to the rugged cliffs of Napali Coast State Wilderness Park in Hawaii, the O Beautiful forever stamps showcase the country’s extraordinary natural beauty.
Each stamp features a photograph that helps illustrate one of five phrases from the song’s famous first verse: “Spacious Skies,” “Waves of Grain,” “Mountain Majesties,” “The Fruited Plain,” and “Sea to Shining Sea.”
The stamps include a national seashore, national parks, state parks, parks managed by the U.S. Forest Service and the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. The stamps highlight some of the nation’s hidden gems, such as wheat fields in Wisconsin and Montana and the lush, fertile landscape surrounding Orinda, CA. The stamps also celebrate the country’s ephemeral wonders, including a double rainbow arching over a Kansas field, the aurora borealis lighting up Three Fingers Mountain in Washington, and a quietly stunning spring sunset over the green hills of Livermore, CA.
First published as a poem on July 4, 1895, “America the Beautiful” was written by poet Katharine Lee Bates (1859–1929) and set to the music of “Materna,” a melody composed by Samuel Augustus Ward (1848–1903). Considered by many to be the country’s unofficial national anthem, the song consists of four verses, each punctuated by the anthemic cry “America! America!” Today it remains one of the country's most popular patriotic songs.
At first glance, Yosemite’s natural wonders are easy to observe. Sights around the park are iconic in the human experience of national parks. Beyond the rocks, plants, and animals, is a story about people in Yosemite written on that very same landscape. It tells a story of different cultures (sometimes working together, sometimes in violent clashes) creating the place we call Yosemite National Park and defining how we experience it. Yosemite’s rich human history tells a story of conflict, dreams, diversity, hardships, adventures, and preservation of one of the first national parks.
