A crowd of 25,000 people gathered on both sides of Niagara Falls on June 30 1859 to witness French tightrope walker Charles Blondin attempt to cross the Niagara gorge. He successfully crossed the Niagara gorge traversing a 1,300 ft long, 3.25 in in diameter rope made of made out of hemp at a dizzying 160 […]
Another year has passed and its time once again for Canada Day. Last year's Stamp of the Day was a full blown celebration of Canada Day with a couple of cool stamps and a lot of link. It's been a long, weird year here in the Great White North. We've learned a lot about ourselves […]
July 2, 1843 started out like any other sultry day in Charleston, South Carolina, until an alligator fell with from the clouds along with the heavy rain. Or so the newspaper reports claimed. According to local reports, the 2 foot long reptile was dumped onto a street in downtown Charleston, far from it's usual swampy […]
It's July 3rd and that means the start of the Dog Days of Summer! Dog Days start, traditionally on July 3 and run through August, bringing with them a dog pile of hot, humid weather here in the Northern Hemisphere. So how will be beat the heat and humidity? Well, with Canadian dogs, of course. […]
On July 4, 2005, NASA's Deep Impact space probe successfully landed on the comet Tempel 1. It didn't so much land as purposely crashed a probe into the comet allowing scientists to peer deep into a comet for the first time. Deep Impact Probe on Tempel 1 Comet Liberia issued this souvenir sheet in 2006 […]
July 5 is Algeria's Independence Day! 1st Anniversary of Algeria’s Independence Issued in 1963 by the Algerian post office Designer: Ali Ali-Khodja After a bitter 8 year war, Algeria shed it's 132 years of French colonial rule. The modern-day People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria is now a proud, sovereign state in North Africa that readily […]
On July 6, 1885, 8 year old Joseph Meister received the first rabies vaccination. “As the death of this child appeared inevitable, I decided, not without deep and severe unease, as one can well imagine, to try on Joseph Meister the procedure which had consistently worked in dogs.” Louis Pasteur Louis Pasteur 1822-1895 […]
July 7 is World Chocolate Day. A special day set aside to pay homage to the noble cacao bean and all the beautiful flavours it brings. To celebrate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of chocolate in France, LaPoste issued this series of chocolate scented stamps in 2009. The clever set was designed by […]
French resistance hero Jean Moulin was murdered by the Gestapo July 8, 1943. Moulin managed to unite the disparate factions resisting the Nazis into a coordinated organisation. He served as the first President of the National Council of the Resistance until his death. “It would be insane and criminal, in the event of Allied action […]
It's Nunavut Day! July 9 marks the anniversary of the establishment of Nunavut as a separate territory in northern Canada, with Inuit taking control of their lives and lands. Nunavut -- "our land" in the Inuktitut language - has been home to Inuit for millennia and part of Canada for more than a century. Embracing […]
Today is Nikola Tesla Day, it's also Tesla's birthday. Restraint has not always been according to my taste, but my pleasurable experiences are a huge reward. Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla – brilliant mind of Serbian people Issued by Serbia in 2022 Designer: Boban Savić with help from Nikola Tesla Museum Born in the old Austrian […]
Zheng He, one of the greatest maritime explorers in history, set out on his first of seven voyages July 11, 1405. The day is celebrated in China as Maritime Day. 600 Anniversary of Zheng He's Voyages Zheng He Good-Neighborly Relations Scientific Navigatioin Released in 2005 by China Designer: Cui Yanwei Engravers: Li Qingfa and […]