SGAS PROPOSES A STAMP TO HONOR FIRST GERMANS ARRIVING IN AMERICA ON 400TH ANNIVERSARY Important News...Please read the SGAS News Release below. On
behalf of the Society for German-American Studies, SGAS President, Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann, has submitted a proposal to the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee of the U.S. Postal Service requesting a U.S. Postage Stamp
in honor of the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first Germans in America at Jamestown, Virginia in 1608. SGAS encourages the study of, and promotes research
in the history, culture, folklore, genealogy, language, literature and the creative areas of the German element in North America. From now until 2008, the 400th anniversary, there will be a great deal of interest as
reflected in publications, conferences, exhibits, and programs dealing with the first Germans, and not just by SGAS.As sixty million Americans claim German ancestry and constitute the largest ethnic
element in the U.S., this stamp which has been proposed would also be of great interest nationally. Please support this proposal for a commemorative stamp by writing to:
Ms. Cindy Tacket, Chairperson Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee U.S. Postal Service Stamp Development, Room 4474E 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW Washington, D.C. 20260-2437 Please follow this link for a sample letter. SGAS News Release ... Cincinnati, Ohio
June 1997 GERMAN HERITAGE STAMP REJECTED Without explanation, the U.S. Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee rejected the request for a commemorative
stamp honoring the arrival of the first Germans in America at Jamestown, Virginia in 1608. Although it normally takes three years to obtain approval of a stamp request, the Stamp Committee took only three
months to review (CRITERIA STAMP SUBJECT SELECTION) and reject the proposal for a stamp honoring the first Germans in America. The
German heritage stamp had been enthusiastically supported by German-American organizations and newspapers from coast to coast. Lately those who have written letters in support of the stamp have received
answers that the idea had been rejected, but we have heard that it is important that the Stamp Advisory Committee keeps receiving requests. So if you wish to support this effort and have not yet written a letter, it
would help if you sent one. Please follow this link for a sample letter.
If you receive a letter informing you that the stamp has been rejected, you can write: Mr. James C. Tolbert, Jr., Manager Stamp Development U.S. Postal Service 475 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20260-2435 One might ask for an explanation of the swift rejection, noting that it is the 400th Anniversary of the arrival of the largest immigrant group, citing the 1990 census, and that the stamp
meets the criteria a) it is of national interest and b)it has a historical perspective. It was suggested to us that a postcard mail-in campaign in other cases has been effective. According to
Don Heinrich Tolzmann, president of the Society for German-American Studies, which initiated the request to the Stamp Committee, German-Americans should contact their congressional representatives (here is a list and the address of the current ones), as the Stamp Committee only makes recommendations to the Postmaster General, and request that the stamp
be approved. "We need to emphasize that German-Americans form one-fourth of the population with some sixty millions, and that they have contributed enormously in the past and present to this country,
and that their contributions deserve full recognition, especially the arrival of the first Germans in this country in 1608," according to Tolzmann. "Many German-Americans from across the country
have called, and are upset and angered by the swift rejection without explanation by the Stamp Committee," stated Tolzmann. for further information: Frances Ott Allen, Publicity Director
Publicity Director Society for German-American Studies (513) 556-2964 foallen@ucbeh.san.uc.edu |