About This Stamp
The 2009 Priority Mail stamp pays tribute to the redwood forests of the United States. Named for the color of their bark and heartwood, redwoods are the tallest living trees in the world, and some of the oldest.
Redwood forests consist of massive redwood trees as well as assorted tree, shrub, flower, fern, and moss species. Together they form a complex ecosystem that also includes many types of amphibians, birds, and mammals. High above the forest floor, the canopy — the layer of foliage formed by the uppermost branches — traps water to help maintain a moist environment below, where fungi and other organisms break down decomposing leaves into vital nutrients. The thick bark of redwood trees is high in tannin, an acidic substance that makes it resistant to insects, fungus, and fire. Nevertheless, redwood forests benefit from periodic fires, which clear the forest floor of plant debris, recycle nutrients into the soil, and allow redwood seedlings to develop.
Redwood forests were once common throughout the northern hemisphere, but changes in climate and topography that occurred about one million years ago limited their range. Today there are two types of redwood tree native to the U.S. The Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) can be found along the coasts of extreme southwestern Oregon and northern and central California, where temperatures are moderate and winters wet with rain. The Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) is native to the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, a mountain range in eastern California that is subject to cooler temperatures and heavy snowfall.
Redwood trees are cone-bearing evergreens. Coast Redwoods — which take 400 to 500 years to reach maturity and can live for 1,000 to 2,000 years — grow to an average height of 300 feet, although some reach more than 370 feet. Their trunks can be more than 20 feet in diameter, with a diameter of nearly 30 feet at the base. They survive the long, hot days of summer by absorbing moisture directly from the fog. Shorter and thicker, the Giant Sequoia also lives longer than its coastal relative.
Stamp Art Director, Stamp Designer
Carl T. Herrman
As an art director for the U.S. Postal Service® for more than 15 years, Carl T. Herrman designed more than 50 stamps and guided more than 250 stamp projects, including Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Humphrey Bogart, and Comic Strip Classics. He also served as art director for five of the Celebrate the Century stamp panes. He has won more than 260 awards for design and design management, including two gold medals from the Society of Illustrators.
Herrman’s career has included positions as Director of Creative Services and adjunct professor at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, and Director of Marketing and Publications for the University of California at Irvine. He has provided consulting services for the Smithsonian Institution, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and numerous academic institutions. Herrman lives in Carlsbad,California.
Stamp Artist
Dan Cosgrove
A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Dan Cosgrove graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1978 with a major in graphic design. After briefly working for the National Park Service in Denver and as a designer at Cato Johnson in Cincinnati, Cosgrove moved to Chicago in 1980 and began a freelance career in digital and traditional illustration.
Cosgrove's designs have appeared in numerous ads, posters, covers, and on packaging. Recent clients include Cunard Line, Dunlop Tire, Fiat, J P Morgan Chase, Miller Brewing Company, Netflix, The New York Times, Shell Oil company, SohoPress, and The Wall Street Journal. In recognition of his work Cosgrove has received awards from Communications Arts and the Society of Illustrators (Gold Medal).
The 2008 Express Mail® and Priority Mail® stamps featuring Mount Rushmore and Hoover Dam were Cosgrove's first projects for the U.S. Postal Service. Since then, Cosgrove has illustrated 27 additional Express Mail and Priority Mail Express stamps. Recent designs include Florida Everglades (Priority Mail) (2023), Great Smoky Mountains (Priority Mail Express) (2023), Monument Valley (Priority Mail) (2022), and Palace of Fine Arts (Priority Mail Express) (2022). He also created the stamp art for USS Missouri (2019).
Cosgrove and his wife live in Clarendon Hills, Illinois.