America started using postage stamps as early as 1775 along with the British. The postage stamps were mainly used for correspondence that were to travel more than 300 miles and weighed more than half ounce. The mails that weighed less than half an ounce were to use something called the prepaid stamps and that cost around five cents which was fairly a substantial amount those days.

When the Americans were using stamps before the Revolutionary War period the British government started laying taxes even on the stamps that they used. This could not be afforded by the American people and in the bargain their trade and commerce dealings ended up very expensive for them. After the American Revolutionary War ended and the Americans attained their independence from Britain, the cost of the stamps fell. Until then most of the stamps carried a symbol of mercury which was a Roman God for trade and commerce. However, after the war what used to cost the American people to send a local correspondence for 3 cents became 3000 miles after the war.

Today, most of the American stamps sport a bald eagle which is the national bird of the country. There have been several stamps designed and created right from the pre-war period and, in fact, very few stamp collectors have had the privilege of collecting such stamps. Several stamps can be viewed in museums which invariably have a display of rare American stamps. Many of these stamps were duplicated for the pleasure of the stamp collector.

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