Assateague Ponies Immortalized with a Stamp
Assateague Island Seashore’s iconic wild ponies were immortalized when officials from the United States Postal Service visited the national park to reveal a stamp celebrating one of the few remaining wild beaches on the East Coast.
Assateague was selected as one of 16 national parks commemorated on a new pane of stamps this year in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service. There are 411 national parks in the United States.
The stamp features a calming and familiar sight for many Eastern Shore residents: two of Assateague’s wild horses grazing in the island’s marshes at sunset, captured by Fayetteville, Arkansas photographer Tim Fitzharris. It is that image that Park Superintendent Deborah Darden believes secured the honor for Assateague.
“It was a real surprise to us,” she said. “We didn’t know until the day before it was announced that we were selected, but I think it’s probably because this image of the horses creates a wonderful feeling about the national parks in the eastern part of the United States.”
Jim Cochrane, the chief marketing and sales officer and executive vice president for the USPS, visited the island for a ceremony in the morning.
In addition to being selected for the stamp, Assateague was chosen over the other commemorated parks to host a special remote celebration, which was broadcast live via satellite at the World Stamp Show in New York City. The show is the world’s largest stamp convention, and it is only hosted once every 10 years.
“It’s such a beautiful place, and it’s the summer,” Cochrane said. “People love the beaches here, and with the kids getting out of school and summer beginning, we thought this was the perfect place.
“It’s a very popular park, and the stamp itself is certainly magnificent.”
Assateague has been part of the National Park System since its creation in 1965 by President Lyndon Baines Johnson. Originally, it was intended for residential and business development, but a 1962 storm that slammed the island fueled residents’ arguments against building there. Members of the community worked together and were able to convince Congress to turn the area into a national park.
Today, Assateague’s parks in Maryland and Virginia welcome about 2.3 million guests annually, ranking the island in the top 10 percent of the most frequently visited national parks, Darden said.
And while Assateague visitors enjoy recreational activities there, such as camping, hiking, surfing, bird-watching, fishing, and more, Darden said the success of the park is mostly due to its most famous residents.
“Everyone comes here for the horses,” she said. “So many people read ‘Misty of Chincoteague’ as a young child and have loved these horses from afar and near.
“Everybody knows about the bison in Yellowstone, the elk at Rocky Mountain, the moose at Grand Teton, but few people realize that we have an equally iconic large mammal within a 3-hour drive of Washington, Baltimore and New York City.”
Cochrane said the 16-pane collection, featuring parks from Alaska to Hawaii, Maine to Florida, and East Coast to West Coast, represents the spirit of the National Park Service in the U.S. He credits Assateague’s popularity and uniqueness with its selection.
“Being on a stamp is pretty important,” Cochrane said. “We only do about 20-25 a year, so Assateague is a pretty big deal.”
For Darden, the stamp means more than recognition. She is most excited to share the wonders she gets to experience daily with people everywhere.
“It makes us part of the history of the centennial, which we really love, but also, I like to think about the millions of people who will use this stamp and get a little moment where they think about Assateague, and they can feel the same love for the park that we do.”
Originally posted by Delmarva Now