The U.S. Postal Service is issuing special commemorative stamps for the 150th anniversaries of the Battle of Gettysburg and the Battle of Vicksburg — two pivotal battles in the Civil War.
On Thursday in Pennsylvania, a special day-of-issue ceremony is being held at the Gettysburg National Military Museum and Park Visitor Center. In Mississippi, ceremonies will be held at the USS Cairo Museum in Vicksburg.
The Battle of Gettysburg, the bloodiest battle of the war, was a turning point for the Union. The Battle of Vicksburg was a Union campaign led by Gen. Ulysses S. Grant to gain control of the Mississippi River.
According to the Postal Service: The Battle of Gettysburg stamp is a reproduction of an 1887 chromolithograph by Thure de Thulstrup (1848-1930), a Swedish-born artist who became an illustrator for Harper's Weekly after the Civil War.
The Battle of Vicksburg stamp is a reproduction of an 1863 lithograph by Currier & Ives titled "Admiral Porter's Fleet Running the Rebel Blockade of the Mississippi at Vicksburg, April 16th, 1863."
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