The lit-up twin arches of the I-74 Mississippi River bridge are shown at dusk on the stamp. It’s part of a group of four stamps released Thursday by the U.S. Postal Service, all featuring photographs of bridges.
USPS spokesman Jim McKean says ideas for new stamps often come from the public, submitted through the USPS website. A committee sifts through the suggestions, and passes the best ones on to the Postmaster General.
"The committee meets quarterly, and they decide out of 30,000, about 25 to 30," he said. "The process takes about three years to complete, and that's how an idea becomes a stamp."
The bridge stamps were designed by Ethel Kessler, an art director for the postal service, using existing photographs.
Another Iowa bridge, the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge between Omaha and Council Bluffs, is also featured in the stamp series.
The stamps are Presorted First-Class Mail stamps for business mail users, which means you need a special permit to use them.
