One hundred fifty years ago today, the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia met at the battle of Hampton Roads, Virginia. It was the first clash of ironclad ships and marked a technological turning point in the Civil War. Though armed with only two guns, the Monitor sat very low in the water (with less than two feet exposed above the surface) and made a very tough target to hit. The fierce battle ended in a draw, but the potential of ironclads had been forcefully demonstrated, and both sides would turn out dozens more before the war was through.
Digital Color Postmark (click to order)
In 2011, the U.S. Postal Service launched a stamp series to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, which engulfed the nation from 1861 to 1865. A souvenir sheet of two stamp designs is being issued through 2015 for each year of the war. For 2011, one stamp depicted the beginning of the war in April 1861 at Fort Sumter, South Carolina, while the other depicts the first major battle of the war three months later at Bull Run, near Manassas, Virginia. For 2012, one stamp depicts the Battle of New Orleans, the first significant achievement of the U.S. Navy in the war, while the other depicts the Battle of Antietam, which marked the bloodiest day of the war. The 2012 Civil War stamps will be issued April 24.
USPS Stamp of Approval 