13c Montana State Flag Stamps - Pack of 10

Ten 13c Montana State Flag Stamps
Issued: February 23, 1976
Scott Catalog #1673

10 Mint, unused postage stamps with original gum as issued by the Post Office. These stamps are genuine and valid to use as postage for current mailing. Be sure to use enough total postage to meet the current postal rate for the item you are mailing.

Great for special mailings like weddings, birthdays, valentines, and events. Also good to use for scrapbooking or displaying in a small picture frame. It's a miniature work of art.

About this stamp:
The trains pulled out from Dillon, Montana, in 1898, the first step of a voyage carrying the First Montana Regiment to battle. The United States and Spain were at war, and the First Montana was headed to the Philippines, a journey of 7,000 miles. The regiment’s commander, Colonel Harry Kessler, felt the troops needed something special to distinguish them from other units. He privately commissioned a flag for the unit that showed the state seal, with “1st Montana Inft’y U.S.V.” above the seal.

The First Montana finally arrived in Manila – 10 days after the city surrendered. During their tour they served in the Philippine Insurrection that directly followed the war. Upon their return to Montana in 1899, Kessler’s flag captured the attention of the public. Six years later, the Montana state legislature adopted that flag as the official state flag, with the regiment’s name removed.

The seal features a pick, shovel, and plow against a background of forests, fields, and mountains. The Great Falls and Missouri River are also shown. The scene represents Montana’s mineral and agricultural wealth, which is reinforced by a banner that says Oro y Plata, or “Gold and Silver.” In 1981, the state legislature added “Montana” above the seal.