Philatelic landmarks: postage stamps featuring the White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, is very possibly one of the world’s most famous addresses along with No. 10, Downing Street in London, writes Christer Brunström, and it has naturally appeared on many stamps 

No other president anywhere in the world occupies a more well-known building than Donald Trump who has resided in the White House since his inauguration on 20 January 2017. 

The construction of the building began in 1792 and it was finally completed in 1800 when President John Adams moved in. The building had been designed in neoclassical style by architect James Hoban (1758-1831), an Irishman born in Kilkenny. He was the subject of a US-Irish joint issue in 1981.

The first disaster to befell the White House occurred during the War of 1812 when the British Army attacked Washington and set the building ablaze. It was severely damaged but reconstruction work started almost immediately. Subsequent administrations have made many alterations and additions to Hoban’s original building.

The White House is the official residence of the United States president and his family. This is where the president receives foreign dignitaries and where he meets with his government ministers. There is ample office space for the many members of the president’s staff.

The White House is closely guarded by the Secret Service.

One can only imagine that it is here that President Trump composes his enigmatic tweets deriding his political opponents and former associates when he is not watching Fox News to find out what is going on in the world.

The White House on stamps

The White House was first depicted on a US definite 4½-cent stamp issued in 1938. In 1945, President Roosevelt was shown on a 3c stamp along with a view of the White House. In 1950, four stamps celebrated the sesquicentennial of Washington, DC, as the nation’s capital and one of the stamps showed the White House. In more recent times, numerous definitive stamps have depicted the building in combination with the American flag.

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