1359, 1369 UNITED STATES (Wisconsin) - Wisconsin map and flag

Posted on 14.12.2014, and completed on 21.12.2014
Bordered by the Montreal River, Lake Superior and Michigan to the north, by Lake Michigan to the east, by Illinois to the south, by Iowa to the southwest, and by Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin is known as "America's Dairyland" because it is one of the nation's leading dairy producers, particularly famous for cheese. The word Wisconsin originates from the name given to the Wisconsin River by one of the Algonquian-speaking American Indian groups living in the region at the time of European contact. With its location between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River, Wisconsin is home to a wide variety of geographical features. The state is divided into five distinct regions: the Lake Superior Lowland in the north, the Northern Highland (with massive mixed hardwood and coniferous forests, as well as thousands of glacial lakes, and the state's highest point, Timms Hill), the Central Plain, the Eastern Ridges and Lowlands, and Western Upland (a rugged, hilly region deeply dissected by rivers and streams). The state capital is Madison, and its largest city is Milwaukee, which is located on the western shore of Lake Michigan.

Wisconsin has been home to a wide variety of cultures over the past 12,000 years, but the agricultural societies emerged over the Woodland period (1000 BCE - 1000 CE). Later, between 1000 and 1500 CE, the Mississippian and Oneota cultures built substantial settlements. The Oneota may be the ancestors of the modern Ioway and Ho-Chunk tribes who shared the Wisconsin region with the Menominee at the time of European contact. The French visited the region since the early 17th century, but they didn't made permanent settlements before Great Britain won control of the region following the French and Indian War in 1763. The first permanent settlers, mostly French Canadians, some Anglo-New Englanders and a few African American freedmen, arrived in Wisconsin while it was under British control, when the fur trade reached its height.

Wisconsin became a territorial possession of the United States in 1783 after the  American Revolutionary War, but the British remained in control until after the War of 1812. Under American control, the economy shifted from fur trading to mining, which drew many immigrants. The Winnebago War of 1827 and the Black Hawk War of 1832 led to the removal of American Indians, and Wisconsin Territory was created in 1836. Continued white settlement led to statehood in 1848. A free state from its foundation, Wisconsin became a center of abolitionism. During the 1860s, it became one of the nation's leading producers of wheat, but at the close of the century intensive agriculture had devastated soil fertility, and lumbering had deforested most of the state. Beginning in the 1890s, farmers shifted from wheat to dairy production. Wisconsin took part in several political extremes in the mid to late 20th century, ranging from the anti-communist crusades of Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s to the radical antiwar protests at UW-Madison that culminated in the Sterling Hall bombing in August 1970.

The flag of the state is a blue flag charged with the state coat of arms. Originally designed in 1863 when regiments from Wisconsin wanted a flag for battlefield use, it wasn't until 1913 that state statutes specified the design of the state flag. The state bird is American robin (Turdus migratorius), and the state flower is Wood violet (Viola sororia).

About the stamps
On the first postcard
About the first stamp, depicting the president Abraham Lincoln, I wrote here. 

The Modern Age

The Bronze Age

The Silver Age

The Golden Age

Two of the stamps are part of a series designed by Greg Breeding and issued on October 09, 2014 to mark the Batman’s 75th anniversary as the protector of Gotham City, one of DC Comics’ most beloved characters, and an icon of the American pop-culture. "The U.S. Postal Service has a long history of celebrating America’s icons, from political figures to pop-culture’s most colorful characters. We are thrilled to bring Batman off the pages of DC Comics and onto the limited edition Forever Batman stamp collection, marking his place in American history," said U.S. Postal Service Chief Marketing and Sales Officer Nagisa Manabe. "Over the past 75 years Batman has captured the imagination of fans around the world - from comic books to television, film, video games and beyond," said Jim Lee, renowned comic book artist and co-publisher of DC Entertainment. The series contain multiple images of the Caped Crusader from artistically distinct periods across his comic book history, exhibiting the evolution of the Dark Knight over the past seven-and-a-half decades:

• the Modern Age - image - it's on the postcard
• the Modern Age - logo - it's on the postcard
• the Bronze Age - image - it's on other postcard
• the Bronze Age - logo - it's on other postcard
• the Silver Age - image - it's on other postcard
• the Silver Age - logo - it's on other postcard
• the Golden Age - image - it's on other postcard
• the Golden Age - logo - it's on other postcard

Note that this series has aroused controversy among stamp collectors. Series like Batman's, according to Bloomberg Businessweek, make traditionalists think that the Postal Service will slap anyone on a stamp for quick profit. "They have really ruined the stamp program," former U.S. Postmaster General Benjamin Bailar told the news site. "They have prostituted it in an effort to make money." Collectors like Bailar believe that U.S. stamps should only commemorate significant benchmarks in U.S. History and important American icons.

On the second postcard
The stamps are part of the series Winter Fun, bout which I wrote here.

On the third postcard
The stamps are part of a set of four, depicting Gingerbread Houses, about which I wrote here.

This is a post for Sunday Stamps #200, run by Viridian from Viridian’s Postcard Blog. The theme of this week is Anything you wish. Click on the button to visit Viridian’s blog and all the other participants.

References
Wisconsin - Wikipedia

Sender: Denise 
Sent from Greenvale (New York / United States), on 10.10.2014