page_title: Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps
section_title: James Madison
hierarchical_section_title: Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps / James Madison
caption_attribution_description: US balls
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 Madison was the fourth president of the United States, served from 1809 to 1817. Madison appears on three definitive issues.
  On December 10, 1894 the Post Office issued a 2-dollar Madison stamp. The engraving of Madison was modeled after his portrayal by Gilbert Stuart, who painted a total of four portraits of the president. The painting used to model the engraving is now owned by the Colonial Williamsburg Association (In 1994, four images of this stamp appeared on a souvenir sheet commemorating the hundredth anniversary of stamp production by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.)
  The dark blue 2-dollar stamp was issued June 5, 1903. The stamp image was designed by R. Ostrander Smith from a painting by an unknown artist, and Madison's portrait was engraved by George F. C. Smillie. Both the 1894 and 1903 2-dollar stamps were often used by the Post Office for internal transferring of funds.
  The Post Office issued a 4¢ Madison stamp on July 1, 1938, part of the Presidential Issue that was issued that year. The engraving of Madison on this issue was modeled after a bust by Frederick William Sievers on display in the State Capitol building in Richmond, Virginia.
  Despite having appeared on definitive stamps, Madison never appeared on a U.S. commemorative stamp until he was included along with the other past presidents on a 22-cent commemorative AMERIPEX presidential issue released in 1986.
  
  In 2001, the Postal Service finally honored James Madison with a single commemorative stamp, issued for the 250th anniversary of his birth, first released in New York, N.Y., on October 18, 2001. The stamp was designed and illustrated by John Thompson.
caption: Issue of 1894
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