The World Through Stamps

An episode from a TV series titled World Through Stamps: The Stories Behind Postage Stamps which aired in the 1950s.

Narrated by well-known CBS newsman Robert Trout, this 13-minute program starts off talking about early attempts at long distance flights before World War I.

It then goes into about how the U.S. government was only one that would bankroll airplanes and developed the first airmail routes in 1918. They also show an example of the first airmail stamp, along with the infamous "upside down Jenny" stamp, which they quote as being worth $4000. The story moves to the barnstormers who bought up surplus Jennys.

This and more than 60,000 other "ephemeral" (advertising, educational, industrial, and amateur) films were archived by Rick Prelinger in New York City beginning in 1993.  In 2002, the film collection was acquired by the Library of Congress, Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division.

To visit the Prelinger Archive, click here.