About This Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service celebrates American bridges with four Presorted First-Class Mail® stamps intended for bulk mail users. The bridges range from modern to historic, pedestrian to car-carrying, and all are important landmarks in their communities.
The stamp art features four bridges completed between 1938 and 2022: the multi-span steel through arch Arrigoni Bridge connecting Middletown and Portland, Connecticut; the s-curved cable-stayed Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge between Council Bluffs, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska; the steel truss Skydance Bridge topped by a public sculpture in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and the basket-handle twin arch Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge connecting Bettendorf, Iowa and Moline, Illinois.
Bridges are among the oldest structures created by humans. In ancient times simple slabs of stone spanned slow moving rivers. And in modern times concrete and steel are used to cover vast distances. While the materials and designs have evolved from utilitarian structures to engineering marvels, bridges remain integral parts of American life, with over 600,000 bridges in the United States. The construction of bridges is a way to reinvigorate communities economically as well as create landmarks of regional pride. Many modern bridges are designed for use by cyclists and pedestrians as well as motorists, capturing the imagination of human possibility.
Whether simply improving transit or vibrantly lighting the night with color-changing light displays, bridges remain vital connectors drawing together people, cities, and the country.
Art director Ethel Kessler designed these stamps using existing photographs.
Bridges is being issued at a Presorted First-Class Mail® rate in self-adhesive coils.
Stamp Art Director, Stamp Designer
Ethel Kessler
Ethel Kessler is an award-winning designer and art director who has worked with corporations, museums, public and private institutions, professional service organizations, and now, the United States Postal Service.
After earning a B.F.A. in visual communications from the Maryland Institute College of Art, Kessler worked as a graphic designer and project manager for the exhibits division of the United States Information Agency. Her work was distributed internationally on subjects such as Immigration, Entrepreneurship, Renovation of American Cities, and the Bicentennial of 1976. She was also responsible for exhibits in Morocco, Botswana, and El Salvador.
In 1981, she established Kessler Design, Inc., for which she is creative director and designer. Clients have included the Clinton Government reorganization, the Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Television, the National Park Service, and the American Institute of Architects.
She has been an art director for the U.S. Postal Service’s stamp development program for more than 25 years. As an art director for USPS, Kessler has been responsible for creating more than 500 stamp designs, including the Breast Cancer Research stamp illustrated by Whitney Sherman. Issued in 1998, the stamp is still on sale and has raised more $98 million for breast cancer research. Other Kessler projects include the popular and highly regarded Nature of America 120 stamp series, a collaboration with nationally acclaimed nature illustrator John Dawson, the 12-year Lunar New Year series with Kam Mak, the American Filmmaking: Behind the Scenes 10 stamps issued in 2003, a 2016 pane of stamps celebrating the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, and the 2023 stamp honoring Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. And many, many others.