Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly Stamp

On June 13, 1987, the U.S. Postal Service issued a sheet of 50 different stamps commemorating American wildlife. Many of the animals in the sheet are native to Georgia, but two -- the Tiger Swallowtail butterfly and the Bobwhite -- are official state symbols of Georgia. On April 4, 1988, Gov. Joe Frank Harris signed an act of the General Assembly naming the Tiger Swallowtail as Georgia's official state butterfly to mark the opening of the Cecil B. Day Butterfly Center at Callaway Gardens in 1988.

This American wildlife stamps marked the third time for the U.S. to issue a sheet of 50 different stamps (the first two occasions being the sheet of 50 state flags issued in 1976 to mark the American Bicentennial and the sheet of 50 state bird and flower stamps issued in 1982).

Interestingly, although the theme of the stamps was American wildlife, official first day of issue ceremonies were held in Toronto, Canada in conjunction with opening ceremonies for CAPEX 87 International Philatelic Exhibition. Additionally, the Postal Service had special pictorial cancellations prepared for release of the stamps simultaneously at Yellowstone, Yosemite, Everglades, and seven other U.S. national parks.

Go to Georgia on Stamps page

Go to Georgia Symbols page

Go to Georgia Wildlife's Tiger Swallowtail page