page_title: Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps
section_title: James Buchanan
hierarchical_section_title: Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps / James Buchanan
caption_attribution_description: English: US Postage stamp: James Buchanan, Issue of 1938, 15c
context_page_description: Presidents of the United States have frequently appeared on U.S. postage stamps since the mid-1800s. The United States Post Office Department released its first two postage stamps in 1847, featuring George Washington on one, and Benjamin Franklin on the other. The advent of presidents on postage stamps has been definitive to U.S. postage stamp design since the first issues were released and set the precedent that U.S. stamp designs would follow for many generations.
  The paper postage stamp itself was born of utility, as something simple and easy to use was needed to confirm that postage had been paid for an item of mail. People could purchase several stamps at one time and no longer had to make a special trip to pay for postage each time an item was mailed. The postage stamp design was usually printed from a fine engraving and were almost impossible to forge adequately. This is where the appearance of presidents on stamps was introduced. Moreover, the subject theme of a president, along with the honors associated with it, is what began to define the stamp issues in ways that took it beyond the physical postage stamp itself and is why people began to collect them.
context_section_description: James Buchanan, Jr. (April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868) was the 15th president of the United States, serving from 1857 until 1861. The last president to be born in the 18th century, Buchanan served as a congressman (1821–1831), Senator (1834–1845), Minister to Russia (1832–1834) and Secretary of State (1845–1849) before ascending to the presidency in 1857. Opinions by historians of Buchanan's presidency vary, as some credit him for keeping a divided nation together for so long while others fault him for failing to avert a civil war. To date he is the only president from the state of Pennsylvania and the only one never to have married.
  The engraved portrayal of James Buchanan appears on the 15-cent issue of the 1938 Presidential Series. The image was modeled after a sculpted bust by Henry Dexter which is now on display in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. This was Buchanan's first appearance on a U.S. postage stamp.
  Buchanan also appears on the AMERIPEX presidential issue of 1986.
caption: Issue of 1938
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