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YORKTOWN, Va. (AP) — The USS. Postal Service will issue a stamp com memorating the Battle of Yorktown on Oct. 16, but the date has some stamp col lectors and Yorktown enthusiasts upset. The actual battle in which Britain's Lord Cornwallis surrendered to the American and French forces led by General George Washington ended on Oct. 19, 1781. Oct. 16, the experts say, was just another day of the Yorktown siege. Edith Fine, a Yorktown resident, said she inquired about the decision to use the earlier date and was told that the date selected was a local decision. But she said she could find no one associated with the Yorktown bicentennial who would acknowledge involvement in the deci sion. Jack Williams, information officer for the Postal Service's Stamp Division in Washington, said the Oct. 16 date was chosen arbitrarily, Williams said since the Yorktown stamp was being issued along with another historical commemorative depicting the Battle of the Virginia Capes on Sept. 5, 1781, ‘it was decided not to use either anniversary date... We did not want to select any date to the detriment of the other date.”’ Also at stake are sales, and the four day Yorktown celebration begins Oct. 16. The Postal Service will issue 165 million of the paid stamps of the Battle of Yorktown and the Virginia Capes. On Oct. 19, 1931, the sesquicentennial of the battle, the Post Office issued a 2-cent stamp featuring engravings of Washington and two French leaders, the Comte de Rochambeau and Comte de Grasse. Government figures show that 25 million Yorktown commemoratives were issued in 1931, with $125,000 in first-day covers postmarked in Yorktown on Oct. 19, and 221,037 stamps sold from the main Yorktown Post Office. Williams said the first-day issue date is used on envelopes many days after the actual date, and orders sent to the Yorktown postmaster will be accepted through Oct. 34 and will still carry a first day-of-issue notation. The design of the special stamp is ex pected to be unveiled in late August or early September. Although some stamp dealers in Virginia have said many collectors ex pressed disappointment about the stamp’s date, at least one stamp authori ty defended the decision. David Packard of Richmond said com memorative stamps are rarely issued on the anniversary date, and even memorial stamps, issued for well-known people, seldom appear on the in dividual’s birthdate. First Virginia Reports Income Net Income by First Virginia Banks Inc. for the first six months of 1981 in creased 32 percent over the same period last year. Income for January through June was $9.27 million or 85 cents per share. In the first half of 1980, income was $7.04 million or 67 cents per share. Assets were $1.63 billion as of June 30, up 8 percent from the first half of 1980. Total deposits were $1.44 billion, a 7 per cent increase from 1980.
Newspaper Details
Daily News-Record
Harrisonburg, Virginia, US
Mon, Jul 13, 1981
Page 9
Full Page
Clipped by
Carol S.
USA 13 Jul 2026
Other Publications Near Harrisonburg, Virginia
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Daily News-Record
