US Stamps
Commemoratives of 1942-1944
Many of the US stamps issued between 1942 and 1944 were wartime-propaganda issues, intended to reinforce the feelings of patriotism and endurance during the difficult war years. Other issues highlighted the ongoing struggle of many nations around the World against aggression, with the largest of these being what US philatelists refer to as the Overrun Countries Issue. The few commemorative US stamps issued during this period continued to highlight significant events in American history.
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The 3 C. denomination commemorative stamp shown above, at the left (Sc. #904), was issued on June 1, 1942 to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Kentucky Statehood.
The design features the well known mural, Daniel Boone and Three Frontiersmen, by Gilbert White (1877-1939), which is in the State Capitol in Frankfort, Kentucky.
The 5 C. denomination stamp shown above, at the right (Sc. #906), was issued on July 7, 1942 in recognition of the Fifth Anniversary of Chinese Resistance to Japanese Aggression.
The design features a map of China, along with portraits of Abraham Lincoln and Sun Yat-Sen, the founder of the Republic of China.
 Flag of Poland
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 Flag of Czechoslovakia
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 Flag of Norway
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 Flag of Luxembourg
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 Flag of Netherlands
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 Flag of Belgium
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 Flag of France
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 Flag of Greece
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 Flag of Yugoslavia
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 Flag of Albania
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 Flag of Austria
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 Flag of Denmark
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Flag of Korea
The thirteen 5 C. denomination Overrun Countries Issue stamps shown above (Sc. #909-21) were issued between June 1943 and November 1944 as a tribute to thirteen nations that were Overrun by the Axis Powers during World War II.
The designs at the sides of each stamp feature a phoenix rising from flames on the left, symbolic of the renewal of life, and a kneeling woman with raised arms on the right, symbolizing the breaking of the shackles of servitude. The center design of each stamp features the flag of the overrun country. (The names of each country are noted in the subtitles below each of the images above.)
These US stamps were printed by the American Bank Note Co., the first time since 1893 that US stamps had been printed by a private company.
Many plate and printing flaws exist on all of these stamps, with the most popular being the KORPA variety on the Korea stamp.
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The 3 C. denomination commemorative stamp shown above, at the left (Sc. #922), was issued on May 10, 1944 to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad.
The design features the Golden Spike Ceremony, based on a mural by John Hafen (1856-1910), located in the Union Pacific Terminal in Salt Lake City. The mural was retouched by John McQuarrie in 1944.
On May 10, 1869, the railroad tracks of the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad met at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory. During a grand ceremony, tracks were joined together, using a silver hammer and a golden spike, thus marking the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States.
The 3 C. denomination commemorative stamp shown above, at the right (Sc. #923), was issued on May 22, 1944 to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of the First Steamship to Cross the Atlantic Ocean (the S.S. Savannah) between May 24 and June 30, 1819.
The design features the S.S. Savannah.
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The 3 C. denomination commemorative stamp shown above, at the left (Sc. #924), was issued on May 24, 1944 to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the First Message Sent by Telegraph.
The stamp features telegraph wires and Samuel Morse's first transmitted words, "What Hath God Wrought".
The 3 C. denomination stamp shown above, at the right (Sc. #925), was issued on September 27, 1944 as a memorial to the Resistance of US and Philippine Defenders on Corregidor Island, during the final phases of the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in 1942.
The stamp features an aerial view of Corregidor Island in Manila Bay, Philippines.
The 3 C. denomination stamp shown above (Sc. #926) was issued on October 31, 1944 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Motion Pictures.
The stamp features the scene of a motion picture being shown for U.S. armed forces in the South Pacific.
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Commemoratives of 1942-1944
The 3 C. denomination patriotic-themed, wartime propaganda stamp shown above (Sc. #905) was issued on July 4, 1942.
The design features an American Eagle and the inscription, WIN THE WAR.
The 2 C. denomination patriotic-themed, wartime propaganda stamp shown above (Sc. #907) was issued on January 14, 1943.
The design features an Allegory of Victory and the inscription, NATIONS UNITED FOR VICTORY.
The 1 C. denomination patriotic-themed, wartime propaganda stamp shown above (Sc. #908) was issued on February 12, 1943.
The design features an Liberty Holding the Torch of Freedom and Enlightenment and the inscription, FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND RELIGION, FROM WANT AND FEAR, from President Roosevelt's Four Freedoms speech of January 6, 1941.