Writer, Philosopher and Naturalist Henry David Thoreau to be Commemorated on a Forever Stamp

WHAT: First-Day-of-Issue dedication ceremony for the Henry David Thoreau Commemorative Forever
stamp will be held on May 23, 2017. The event is free and open to the public.

WHO: Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton – Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation Commissioner Leo Roy – U.S. Postal Service General Counsel and Executive Vice President Thomas J. Marshall – Select Board Town of Concord Chair Michael Lawson – Walden Woods Project Board Member/Environmentalist/Actor Ed Begley Jr.

WHEN: Tue., May 23 @ 11 a.m.

WHERE: Walden Pond State Reservation Visitors Center
915 Walden St.
Concord, MA 01742

The public may RSVP online at usps.com/thoreau. Followers of the U.S. Postal Service’s
Facebook page can view live streaming video of the event at facebook.com/USPS. The media is
asked to share the news on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #ThoreauStamps.

BACKGROUND: The U.S. Postal Service celebrates writer, philosopher, and naturalist Henry David Thoreau
(July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) on the bicentennial year of his birth. The stamp art is an oil-onpanel
painting of Thoreau’s face based on a famous 1856 daguerreotype by Benjamin
Maxham. On the right side of the stamp is Thoreau’s signature of his last name. Below the
signature is a branch of sumac leaves.

With Thoreau’s personal example of simple living, his criticism of materialism, and the timeless questions he raises about the place of the individual in society and humanity’s role in the natural world, he continues to inspire new generations to assert their independence, reinterpret his legacy, and ask challenging questions of their own. Sam Weber of Brooklyn, NY, was the stamp artist. Art director Greg Breeding of Charlottesville, VA, designed the stamp.

Please Note: Please address any questions, or stamp orders, to USPS.com.