About This Stamp
The War of 1812, sometimes called “the forgotten conflict,” was a confrontation with Great Britain that brought the United States to the verge of bankruptcy and disunion. With this 2015 issuance, the U.S. Postal Service® concludes its commemoration of the bicentennial of a war that ultimately helped forge our national identity and gave us our national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The subject of this final stamp is Andrew Jackson’s triumphant victory over the British on January 8, 1815, at the Battle of New Orleans. Using mixed media, stamp artist Greg Harlin, a specialist in historical paintings, depicts American troops and artillery repelling British forces from behind a mile-long defensive earthwork known as Jackson’s line.
A portrait of Andrew Jackson in his military uniform, by artist John Vanderlyn (1775-1852), appears on the reverse of the stamp sheet. A nineteenth-century depiction of the battle by Oliver Pelton appears on the front of the sheet above the selvage text. The stamp sheet also includes verso text.
The Battle of New Orleans was the most decisive victory in the war for the underdog Americans. The British suffered some 2,000 casualties as they were gunned down while trying to breach Jackson's line. Jackson instantly became a national hero.
Ironically, the battle was fought two weeks after the Treaty of Ghent, which essentially declared the war a draw, had been signed in Belgium on December 24. But this news had not reached American shores, and the treaty would not be ratified until February 1815. Jackson’s victory, coming as it did in the final weeks of the war and before the peace treaty was ratified, left Americans with the impression they had won the war as a whole—and had defeated the greatest power in the world.
Greg Breeding served as art director and designer for the stamp.
The War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans stamp is being issued as a Forever® stamp in self-adhesive sheets of 20. This Forever® stamp will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.
Stamp Art Director, Stamp Designer
Greg Breeding
Greg Breeding is a graphic designer and principal of Journey Group, a design company he co-founded in 1992, located in Charlottesville, Virginia. He was creative director until 2013, at which time he began serving as president and continued in that role through 2023.
Breeding’s fascination with modernism began while studying design at Virginia Commonwealth University. His affinity with the movement continues and motivates his ongoing advanced studies at the Basel School of Design in Switzerland most every summer.
As an art director for postage stamp design since 2012, Breeding has designed more than 100 stamps covering a diverse array of subjects, from Star Wars droids and Batman to Harlem Renaissance writers and the transcontinental railroad.
His work has been recognized in annual design competitions held by Graphis, AIGA, PRINT magazine, and Communication Arts.
Breeding lives in North Garden, Virginia, with his wife and enjoys nothing so much as frolicking on the floor with his grandchildren.
Stamp Artist
Greg Harlin
Illustrator Greg Harlin has always called the Washington, D.C. area home. A comic book collector as a child, Harlin got his artistic start by copying the art in his favorite issues. His mother’s affinity for Andrew Wyeth also helped shape his desire for a life in the arts from a young age.
Shortly after receiving his B.F.A. in graphic design from the University of Georgia in 1980, Harlin began working for a large illustration company in Atlanta. In 1981, he switched gears, signing on with a small design firm in Annapolis, Maryland, which he loved so much that he never left.
From his first painting of a colonial minuteman, which still hangs in his childhood home, Harlin has loved capturing historical subjects. This interest opened the door to working with some of his favorite clients, including National Geographic, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Park Service. Harlin has also illustrated five children’s books covering several topics from American history; among them are We the People, Hanukkah at Valley Forge, and Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride.
Through his historical watercolors, Harlin is able to see “life come into [his] subjects; moving and changing, they become real.” Harlin’s eye for meticulous detail and knack for uncovering stories have won him national acclaim.
When he isn’t painting, Harlin likes to soak up the rich history in the nation’s capital. He currently works and lives in Annapolis with several cats.
Harlin's projects for the U.S. Postal Service include The War of 1812: Fort McHenry (2014), The War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans (2015), Repeal of the Stamp Act, 1766 (2016), Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor (2020), and Battlefields of the American Revolution (2025).