You probably don’t think about your mail that much anymore. Most of it is just utility bills or junk flyers for a local pizza place you’ve never visited. But back in 2019, the United States Postal Service (USPS) did something that actually made people look at their envelopes again. They released a set of postage stamps Sesame Street enthusiasts went absolutely wild for. It wasn’t just about mailing a letter; it was about the 50th anniversary of a show that basically raised half the planet.
I remember seeing the sheet for the first time. It was bright. It was loud. It felt like childhood squeezed into a tiny perforated square.
Most people assume these stamps were just a quick marketing gimmick. They weren't. The process of getting a fictional character onto a Forever stamp is actually a bureaucratic nightmare involving the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee. This group is picky. They don’t just hand out stamp honors to anyone. But for Sesame Street, the decision was basically a no-brainer because of the sheer cultural weight the show carries.
The day the USPS went to 123 Sesame Street
The official dedication happened in June 2019. It wasn't in some stuffy government building in D.C., either. They held it right at the set at Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York. Can you imagine the scene? You have postal dignitaries in suits standing next to a giant yellow bird. It’s surreal.
The collection featured 16 different characters. We’re talking the heavy hitters: Big Bird, Ernie, Bert, Cookie Monster, Rosita, The Count, Oscar the Grouch, Abby Cadabby, Herry Monster, Julia, Guy Smiley, Snuffleupagus, Telly, Grover, Zoe, and, obviously, Elmo.
What’s interesting is who wasn't there.
Collectors often point out that the 2019 postage stamps Sesame Street set focused heavily on the Muppets but left out the humans. No Gordon. No Susan. No Maria or Luis. While the Muppets are the face of the brand, the show’s soul was always that "experimental" integration of puppets and real people living in an inner-city neighborhood. Leaving the humans off the stamps felt like a missed opportunity to some long-time fans, though from a design perspective, a puppet’s face just pops better on a 1-inch piece of paper.
Why collectors still hunt for these specific sheets
If you go on eBay right now, you can still find these. They aren't "rare" in the sense of a 19th-century misprint that costs a million dollars. USPS printed millions of them. However, they have become a staple for "topical collectors."
Topical collecting is basically a niche where you collect stamps based on a subject—like cats, space, or in this case, Jim Henson's legacy.
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Art director Derry Noyes was the one who designed these. She chose to use existing library photographs of the Muppets, but she cropped them in a way that made them feel intimate. It's just their faces. No background clutter. When you put a stamp of Oscar the Grouch on a wedding invitation, you’re making a statement. You’re telling the recipient that you have a sense of humor.
Honestly, the "Forever" status of these stamps is the best part. You could have bought a sheet in 2019 for $11.00, and today, even as postal rates climb, they still cover the cost of a first-class letter. It’s a hedge against inflation wrapped in nostalgia.
The Julia factor: A milestone for representation
One specific stamp in the set carries more weight than the others. Julia.
Julia is a 4-year-old Muppet with autism. Including her in the 2019 postage stamps Sesame Street lineup was a massive deal. It wasn't just about being "inclusive" for the sake of it. It was about the USPS acknowledging that Sesame Street’s modern era is just as important as the 1969 era. For families with children on the spectrum, seeing Julia on a government-issued stamp was a form of validation that’s hard to put into words.
The technical side of the 2019 release
Let's get into the weeds for a second. The stamps were printed using the offset process by Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. They used a "phosphor tagged" paper, which is basically what allows the high-speed sorting machines at the post office to detect where the stamp is so they can cancel it.
If you're a serious philatelist—that's the fancy word for stamp nerd—you look for the "plate position." On these sheets, you’ll find a plate number in at least two corners. Usually, it's a "P" followed by four or five digits.
- Format: Pane of 16 stamps
- Adhesive: Pressure-sensitive (peel and stick, no licking required)
- Size: The actual image area is about 1.05 x 1.05 inches
The colors are incredibly vivid. Because the Muppets are made of fleece and foam, they have a specific texture. The high-resolution photography used for these stamps actually captured the "fuzz." If you look at the Grover stamp under a magnifying glass, you can see the individual fibers of his blue fur. It’s a testament to how far printing technology has come since the first US stamps were issued in 1847.
What people get wrong about "Value"
I see this all the time on forums. Someone finds a sheet of postage stamps Sesame Street in a drawer and thinks they’ve struck gold.
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Kinda... but no.
Unless there is a massive printing error—like Big Bird being upside down or Elmo missing his eyes—these are worth exactly what the current first-class rate is, plus maybe a small premium if the sheet is in pristine condition. People buy them because they love them, not because they’re going to fund a retirement home in Florida.
But value isn't always about money. In the world of "Postcrossing" (a global postcard exchange project), sending a Sesame Street stamp to someone in Germany or Japan is like sending a piece of American gold. Everyone knows these characters. They’ve been localized in over 140 countries.
The 1999 predecessor you probably forgot
While the 2019 set is the most famous, it wasn’t the first time Big Bird graced a stamp.
Back in 1999, the USPS released the "Celebrate The Century" series. This was a massive undertaking—150 different stamps issued over two years, commemorating each decade of the 1900s. Sesame Street made the cut for the 1970s sheet (even though it debuted in late '69).
That 1999 version was different. It featured Big Bird sitting in his nest, and it was a 33-cent stamp. If you find one of those today, you’d need to add extra postage to it just to send a standard letter. The 2019 Forever versions are much more practical for actual use.
How to preserve your collection
If you’ve got a sheet and you want to keep it nice, don’t just toss it in a shoe box. The adhesive on "pressure-sensitive" stamps is basically a slow-moving chemical reaction. Over decades, that glue can bleed through the paper or turn yellow.
- Buy a glassine envelope. These are pH-neutral and moisture-resistant.
- Keep them flat. Curling is the enemy of a clean stamp sheet.
- Avoid sunlight. The dyes used in the 2019 set are high quality, but UV rays will eventually turn Oscar the Grouch into a weird shade of grey-brown.
The cultural impact of the "Mailing Muppets"
There is something deeply ironic about using a high-tech AI or a smartphone to talk about stamps. Stamps are slow. They represent a time when communication took effort.
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Sesame Street was built on that same kind of intentionality. Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, the creators, wanted to see if television could actually teach kids rather than just sell them sugary cereal. Putting these characters on stamps was a way of the US government saying, "This experiment worked."
It’s about more than just "entertainment." It’s about the fact that for many kids, the characters on those postage stamps Sesame Street sent out were their first friends. They taught them how to count, sure, but they also taught them how to deal with grief (when Mr. Hooper died) and how to be kind to the grouch next door.
What to do if you want to start a collection now
You missed the initial post office window. You can't just walk into a branch and buy these at the counter anymore. They've been "de-listed" from the active inventory.
Your best bet is looking at local stamp shows or reputable online dealers. Avoid the "scarcity" traps. Some sellers will list them as "RARE!! OUT OF PRINT!!" to jack up the price. They are out of print, but there are still thousands of sheets floating around. Pay a fair price, which usually sits around 1.5x to 2x the face value for a mint sheet.
If you want to go the extra mile, look for "First Day Covers" (FDCs). These are envelopes that were postmarked in New York on the day of release. They usually have a special pictorial cancellation—maybe a silhouette of Big Bird—that you can't get anywhere else.
Actionable steps for fans and collectors
If you are looking to get your hands on these or want to dive deeper into the hobby, here is how you actually do it without getting ripped off or losing interest.
- Verify the condition: If buying online, ask for a photo of the actual sheet, not a stock image. Check for "bent perfs" (the little teeth on the edge of the stamp).
- Check the USPS Postal Store for current alternatives: While the 2019 set is gone, they often release "Art of the Muppets" or other Jim Henson-related items that pair well with the Sesame Street set.
- Join a community: Look for the American Topical Association. They have checklists for almost every subject imaginable, including "Children’s Television."
- Use them: Seriously. If you have a few sheets, use one. Send a letter to a niece, a nephew, or a friend. In a world of digital noise, a physical letter with a Cookie Monster stamp is a small act of rebellion.
Don't wait for these to become "investment grade" assets. That’s not what they’re for. They are meant to be looked at. They’re a tiny, sticky tribute to a street where the air is sweet and the lessons are permanent. If you find a sheet, keep it out of the light, keep it dry, and maybe, just once, use it to send a "thank you" note to someone who made your childhood a little brighter.