About This Stamp
This 22-cent commemorative stamp was issued on May 11, 1985, in Madison, South Dakota, to honor the 50th anniversary of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA). The stamp was available at post offices nationwide on the next business day, May 13. The design for the stamp was unveiled February 5, 1985, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the REA by executive order on May 11, 1935. It was permanently established by Act of Congress on May 20, 1936, which authorized it to serve as a lending agency and develop a program for rural electrification. The REA became part of the Department of Agriculture.
In 1935 only about one out of 10 farms had electricity. Since its inception, the REA had approved almost $60 billion in loans to assist millions of consumers of electricity and telephone service subscribers. In 1985 there were almost 1,000 user-owned rural electric systems in the United States delivering electricity to 25 million rural Americans.
The stamp was designed by Howard Koslow of East Norwich, New York; typographer and art director was Bradbury Thompson of Riverside, Connecticut; modeler was Clarence Holbert; engraver was Gary Slaght (letters and numerals). The gravure/intaglio process was used. The stamps were issued in panes of 50.
Art Director
Bradbury Thompson
Stamp Artist
Howard Koslow
Howard Koslow was commissioned to do paintings that can be seen at the U.S. Air Force Academy, the National Air and Space Museum, and the NASA Art Gallery, Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The National Park Service also commissioned him to create paintings for its historical art collections. Koslow's previous projects for the U.S. Postal Service include eight 1940s Celebrate The Century stamps (1999), four stamps featuring jazz/blues singers Mildred Bailey, Billie Holiday, Jimmy Rushing, and Bessie Smith (1994), and all of the stamps in the Lighthouse series: Mid-Atlantic Coastal Lighthouses (2021), Great Lakes Lighthouses (1995), Southeastern Lighthouses (2003), Pacific Lighthouses (2007), Gulf Coast Lighthouses (2009), and New England Coastal Lighthouses (2013). Koslow also designed a number of stamped cards including Carnegie Hall (1991), Ellis Island (1992), and the National Cathedral (1993). Howard Koslow died on January 25, 2016 at his home in Toms River, New Jersey. He was 91.