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Steuben Stamp
Club
APS Chapter 1357
Meets at 7 p.m. the second Monday, except July, August, October,
at Kanestio Historical Society Building, 23 Main St., Canisteo
Sue Babbitt, 1990 Square Woods Drive, Canisteo, NY 14823-1250
babbitts@stny.rr.com, 607-698-2062
The Eagle Stands Proud in Kanona
The eagle has been a proud symbol of the U.S. Postal Service since August 12, 1970, the
day President Richard M. Nixon signed into law the Postal Reorganization Act converting
the Post Office Department into an independent establishment of the executive branch.
It was at this time the USPS announced the adoption of a new seal. It featured a bald
eagle poised for flight on a white field, above red and blue bars framing the words U.S.
Mail and surrounded by a square border with the words United States Postal Service on
three sides and nine five pointed stars at the base.
In 1869 the eagle appeared for the first time on U.S. stamps and has been a familiar
sight ever since. So when a large dead spruce tree in front of the Kanona Post Office
needed to come down, Postmaster Cathy Harvey made special arrangements for the tree
to live on in another way. Through creative chain saw artist Joe Gerych, the tree trunk was
transformed into a visible symbol of the United States — the eagle.
To spotlight the event, the Kanona Post Office offered a special pictorial one day cancel
to commemorate the tree’s transformation. To add a special touch to a handful of covers
Ms. Harvey used a photo stamp that featured a picture of the post office. Kanona, New York,
is a small village in Steuben County. Its post office was established on February 9, 1825.
56 Stamp Insider
Chain Saw Art
Chain saw artist Joe Gerych, upper left,
carves breast feathers on the eagle.
Steuben Stamp Club member John S.
Babbitt, above, displays a Kanona cover
franked with a photo stamp and having
the eagle pictorial cancellation.
John S. Babbitt photos