Philosateleia
Kevin Blackston
PO Box 217
Floresville TX 78114-0217
United States of America

Cranberry Bog

Massachusetts, USA

Each fall, cranberry farmers head to the low-lying areas known as bogs to harvest the bright red berries that are a staple of holiday celebrations in the United States. After flooding the bogs, harvesters churn the water to break the berries loose from their vines, then skim the fruit from the surface of the water.1

Approximately 5% of the United States’ cranberry crop is grown in bogs around Carver, Massachusetts, one of which is the subject of the 2012 stamp pictured here.2 The state’s representatives in the U.S. Congress had unsuccessfully lobbied for a commemorative stamp honoring the cranberry industry as early as 1949.3

The Pilgrims who settled in Massachusetts in the 1600s named the colorful orbs “craneberries” because the shape of a cranberry vine’s blossoms resembles the head of a crane.4

Forever U.S. postage stamp picturing a cranberry bog in Massachusetts, USA
Cranberry Bog

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References

  1. Publicity Kit: Earthscapes Stamps. United States Postal Service. 20 Sept. 2012. Accessed 16 Apr. 2013.
  2. Burrell, Chris. New Postage Stamp Honors Carver Cranberries. The Patriot Ledger. 5 Nov. 2012. Accessed 16 Apr. 2013.
  3. Ask Stamp for 100th Anniversary of Cranberry. Nashua Telegraph, 10 June 1949. Accessed 16 Apr. 2013.
  4. History of Cranberries. Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association. Accessed 16 Apr. 2013.

Published 2018-06-18