The Heroes of 2001 Postage Stamp

On March 11, 2002, the United States Postal Service issued a new stamp that honor the men and women who gave their all in the rescue efforts on September 11, 2001. These “semi-postal” stamps were sold for 45 cents each; which was 11 cents higher than regular postage stamps were selling for at the time.

Semi-postal stamps are stamps that are sold at a higher rate so that money can be raised to support a specific charity or cause. The additional money collected from the sales of these stamps provided assistance to the families of the emergency relief personnel who were killed or permanently disabled in connection with the horrible terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.

It should be noted that issuing semi-postal stamps is not commonplace in the United States. These stamps were only the second semi-postal postage stamps ever issued in United States history. The first ever semi-postal stamps were issued for Breast Cancer Awareness. There were 205 million Heroes of 2001 postage stamps issued.

The stamp release ceremony was held at the White House with then President Bush, Postmaster General John Potter, and many firefighters and rescue personnel who helped in the rescue efforts.

Check out Stamp Center for a wide selection of semi-postals from around the world.