Postage stamps and postal history of British Columbia

The postage stamps and postal history of British Columbia started in 1860 with the issue of a single brownish-rose stamp depicting Queen Victoria in profile and denominated as 2½ pence. It was issued jointly by Vancouver Island and British Columbia as each colony had insufficient postal trade to justify printing separate stamps. In 1862, Vancouver Island adopted decimal currency and sold the stamp for 5 cents, before issuing its own 5 and 10 cent stamps in September 1865. Meanwhile, British Columbia had increased the postal rate to 3 pence but continued to use the unified stamp. In November 1865, British Columbia issued its own stamps and the unified stamp became invalid. In 1866, the two colonies were united as British Columbia.

In 1860, the colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia issued a postage stamp inscribed with the names of both British Columbia and Vancouver Island. The British Colony of Vancouver Island (also known as Vancouver's Island) was established in 1849, after the Hudson's Bay Company founded Fort Camosack (later Fort Victoria) in 1843.

The Fraser River Gold Rush of 1858 caused an influx of settlers to the mainland, via Vancouver Island, and after this, British Columbia was made a new colony on the mainland. In 1866, the two colonies were united as British Columbia and, in 1871, this became a province of Canada.

21 September - Gratitude Day

 

Gratitude Day is celebrated annually on the 21st September. The celebration of Gratitude Day allows both individual citizens and organisations within wider society to celebrate the broad meaning of gratitude in a variety of ways. World Gratitude Day has been designed to bring the whole world together in a day that is all about being thankful. World Gratitude Day joins organizations, nationals, and individuals in sharing their gratitude in a number of different ways. 

21 September - Malta Independence Day

Independence Day is one of the five national holidays in Malta. It celebrates the day the country gained independence from the United Kingdom on 21 September 1964. Throughout its existence, Malta had a long and complex history which resulted in the island being ruled by a plethora of foreign rulers. Such rulers include the likes of the “Phoenicians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Normans, Sicilians, Swabians, Aragonese, Hospitallers, French, and British”.Malta's final ruler, Britain, granted Malta self-governance after Malta's brave resistance to the Axis powers and loyalty to Britain during World War Two, which did allow for the movement for independence to grow more in popularity.Malta attained independence from the British Empire and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1964 and declared itself a republic a decade later,known as Republic Day.

The Maltese people greatly celebrate the occasion with many activities and ceremonies. The number of activities change every year, but there won't ever be a shortage of them. “There are numerous parades, festivals, musical performances, and cultural events all over the island of Malta and the smaller island of Gozo”.Every Sunday during the months of March to December, the “In Guardia Parades”, a series of historical re-enactments of past battles by veteran reenactors, is played.

21 September - International Day of Peace

 

International Day of Peace seeks to promote peace among nations and peoples. Peace is recognized as both an innate state of being, and a dynamic evolutionary process wherein constructive growth can occur and the children of this and future generations may gain hope for a better world to inherit.

International Day of Peace was established by the United Nations in 1981. In 2002, the United Nations declared it a permanent holiday. Through education and public awareness events, the UN endeavors to strengthen the ideals of peace among all of the world's inhabitants. International Day of Peace is observed on September 21st each year. On this day, the UN urges all hostilities to stop, worldwide.

20 September - Cannes Film Festival in 1946

The 1st annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 20 September to 5 October 1946. Twenty-one countries presented their films at the "First Cannes International Film Festival", which took place at the former Casino of Cannes. Only one year after the end of World War II, most of the films were about the war.There arose several technical issues, such as the tarpauline cover blowing away in a storm on the day before the winners were to be announced, the reels of Hitchcock’s Notorious shown in reverse order, and George Sydney’s The Three Musketeers projected upside-down.

During the first festival, the jury was made up of one representative per country, with French historian Georges Huisman as the Jury President. With more emphasis on creativity than in competitiveness, eighteen nations presented their films. Eleven of them tied for the first Grand Prix of the International Festival.

19 September - National Gymnastics Day

 

National Gymnastics Day is celebrated on September 19 of this year. One must possess the physical strength to battle in any situation. At the same time, the person must also have a flexible body. Gymnastics is a classic sport for both the gender that provides both physical strength and flexibility. The National Gymnastics Day is celebrated as a way to encourage the gymnasts and bring awareness about the sport among others to actively participate.

All gymnasts, coaches, gymnastics clubs and fans are invited to celebrate the sport with USA Gymnastics!.

19 September - The Battles of Saratoga in 1777

The Battles of Saratoga (September 19 and October 7, 1777) marked the climax of the Saratoga campaign, giving a decisive victory to the Americans over the British in the American Revolutionary War. British General John Burgoyne led a large invasion army southward from Canada in the Champlain Valley, hoping to meet a similar British force marching northward from New York City and another British force marching eastward from Lake Ontario; the southern and western forces never arrived, and Burgoyne was surrounded by American forces in upstate New York. He fought two small battles to break out which took place 18 days apart on the same ground, 9 miles (14 km) south of Saratoga, New York. They both failed.

18 September - Tiffany & Co established in 1837

Tiffany & Co. (colloquially known as Tiffany's) is an American luxury jewelry and specialty retailer headquartered in New York City.It sells jewelry, sterling silver, china, crystal, stationery, fragrances, water bottles, watches, personal accessories, and leather goods.Tiffany is known for its luxury goods, particularly its diamond and sterling silver jewelry.It markets itself as an arbiter of taste and style.[11] These goods are sold at Tiffany stores, and through direct-mail and corporate merchandising.

Tiffany & Co. was founded in 1837 by the jeweler Charles Lewis Tiffany and became famous in the early 20th century under the artistic direction of his son Louis Comfort Tiffany. The company operates retail outlets in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Japan, Europe and the United Arab Emirates. In 2018, Tiffany had 93 stores in the US and 321 stores worldwide; net sales totaled US$4.44 billion.

In November 2019, LVMH announced its purchase of Tiffany & Co for $16.2 billion, with the deal expected to close in June 2020.

Tiffany operates 326 stores globally in countries such as the United States, Japan, Europe, and Canada, as well as the Latin America and Pacific Asia regions.

18 September - James Henry Scullin born in 1876

James Henry Scullin (18 September 1876 – 28 January 1953) was an Australian Labor Party politician and the ninth Prime Minister of Australia. Scullin led Labor to government at the 1929 election. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 transpired just two days after his swearing in, which would herald the beginning of the Great Depression in Australia. Scullin's administration would soon be overwhelmed by the economic crisis, with interpersonal and policy disagreements causing a three-way split of his party that would bring down the government in late 1931. Despite his chaotic term of office, Scullin remained a leading figure in the Labor movement throughout his lifetime, and served as an éminence grise in various capacities for the party until his retirement in 1949.

17 September - Australian Citizenship Day

 

Australian Citizenship Day is celebrated each year on 17 September.Managed by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP), Australian Citizenship Day is an opportunity for all Australian citizens, whether by birth or by choice, to reflect on the meaning and importance of their citizenship. The day is used as an opportunity to think about what unites all Australians, to take pride in Australia's democratic values and to celebrate the role citizens play in shaping the nation.