The Stamp and Artist

Image of a newspaper scan of the proposed design with the final copy of the design at the bottom — Original proposed stamp design in black and white next to the final green design.
Image courtesy of Florida International University Library

122 Million Little Stamps with a Big Mission!

The idea for a postage stamp commemorating the park’s dedication came from the Everglades National Park Commission, the same group that is credited with the multi-year effort to establish the park. The final artwork shows a Great White Heron in front of an outline of the state of Florida and the park's boundaries, "symbolic of the exotic wildlife of the region," a top Post Office official Joseph J. Lawler mentioned in his speech at the first-day ceremony. Lawler went on to note that the green coloring was meant to reflect "the perennial verdant foliage of this summery land."

Before the final version was approved, an earlier proposed design was different enough that it was featured in the local newspaper. Can you spot the differences? This newspaper clipping, printed in black and white, shows a heron rendered against a bold, textured background, with the park's name spelled out in large block letters across the top. Since newspapers of the era couldn't print in color, we don't know exactly what shade of green was originally used, but the layout and lettering alone show how different the stamp could have looked before the final, simpler design was chosen.

The stamp measures just 2.13 by 3.66 centimeters (0.84 by 1.44 inches), about the size of your thumb, and was printed on sheets of fifty stamps. The Everglades National Park museum collection has one of these sheets in the permanent collection. In 1947, it cost 3 cents to mail a letter, which meant this stamp could go on almost any envelope in the country. As letters and envelopes were mailed across the country, Postmasters would "cancel" or deface the stamp by applying a physical mark or stamp, often with the post office location, date, and time. This is how we know the letters were indeed sent on the First Day of Issue.

Black and white image of a large crowd gathering during the first day of issue release — Attendance at the first day of issue ceremony in Florida City, December 5, 1947.
Image courtesy of South Dade News Leader

The stamp was released on December 5, 1947 in Florida City, a town of just 1,006 people at the time. An official motorcade of state and national dignitaries rolled into town behind a police escort, greeted by welcome banners and rows of American flags. Lawler personally presented commemorative stamp albums to dignitaries including Florida's Governor Millard Caldwell and Florida's two senators Claude Pepper and Spessard L. Holland. Many of these individuals were in the area to attend the dedication of Everglades National Park the following day.

Read about the day's events in the ceremony pamphlet!

The public turned out in huge numbers, as seen in this image to the right. By the end of that first day, Florida City Postmaster Anna B. Chapman and her staff had sold $802,500 worth of stamps and cancelled 466,647 first day covers. Postal officials said it beat every national park stamp issued before it. The total print run eventually topped 122 million, making it one of the best-selling commemorative stamps of its era!

The Artist: Garnett Megee

For most people, the Everglades stamp was their first glimpse of this wild, remote place. For the man who designed it, it was home.

Garnett Megee was a letter engraver for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington, D.C. who got the assignment through a chain of connections rooted in South Florida. John D. Pennekamp, a Miami Herald editor and naturalist, wanted a stamp designed to help promote the new park and pitched the idea to the Postal Service. Pennekamp had heard about Megee through a mutual friend, August Burghard, founder of the Everglades National Park Commission.

For Megee, the project felt personal. He had grown up in South Florida and remembered the Everglades in a wilder, more untamed state. In 1998, Megee was interviewed by the South Florida Sun Sentinel and recalled his memories of South Florida, when farms in Homestead flooded with salt water and roads filled with snakes at high tide. "It was pretty wild back then, very primitive," he said.

"I was elated when he first asked me. I was tickled to death," Megee said of getting the commission. "It wasn't hard to design at all. I grew up in South Florida so I had been to the Everglades and knew all about it." It took him about two weeks to complete the design. He chose the Great White Heron specifically to represent the region's wildlife, calling it "one of the outstanding birds in the area."

In 1998, over 50 years after the stamp’s initial release, Florida City held an anniversary celebration for the stamp's unveiling, Megee returned as an honored guest. "They had a special parking spot reserved. It was unbelievable," he said. Looking back on the place that inspired his design, Megee had a simple hope for its future: "I think they should just continue protecting it the way they are now. If they do, it should be around for another 1,000 years."

That hope hasn't gone away. It's echoed in every restoration project, every research study, and every school field trip that brings a new generation face to face with the Everglades. A stamp started this story... now it's your turn to help continue it.

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