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1981 stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of Hoban's death.
In 1981, Irish artist Ron Mercer created a timeless portrait of James Hoban for a postage stamp, and the American designer Walter D. Richards, renowned for his American Architecture Series, rendered the White House. On September 29, 1981, First Lady Nancy Reagan, Postmaster General William F. Bolger, and Ireland's ambassador to the United States Sean Donlon, participated in a dedication ceremony announcing the stamp's release. Ireland issued its Hoban stamp on that day, but the United States waited two weeks for the anniversary of the October 13, 1792, laying of the cornerstone of the White House. During the stamp's production, the United States Postal Service raised the price of a first class postage stamp from 18 cents to 20 cents, effective November 1. To avoid a controversy over a short-lived 18 cent stamp, the agency took the unusual step of issuing stamps in two denominations with the same design.
Featuring Laurie Grace, Chairman of the James Hoban Society of Ireland; Brother Christy O’Carroll, Congregation of Christian Brothers; Ciarán O’Connor, State Architect of Ireland; Merlo Kelly, Senior Architect, Lotts Architecture & Urbanism; Brian O’Connell, Director and Founder of O’Connell Mahon Architects and a contributor to the book James Hoban: Designer and Builder of the White House
Featuring Dr. Christopher Moran, Chairman, Co-Operation Ireland; Merlo Kelly, Design Fellow, University College Dublin, School of Architecture Planning and Environmental Policy; and Andrew McCarthy, Independent Historian and Scholar
Featuring Shea McEnerney, historic preservationist and Next-Gen Leader
Featuring Geraldine Byrne Nason, Ambassador of Ireland to the United States
Featuring Tham Kannalikham, White House Historical Association Board Member and former White House interior designer; Steven Spandle, architect of the White House tennis pavilion; and Emily Bedard, Next-Gen Leader and Creative Director for Foster Reeve & Associates
Featuring Jason Van Dyke, Director of Communications, Grand Lodge of Washington, DC, and Chris Ruli, Historian & Librarian, Grand Lodge of Washington, DC
Featuring Historian Dr. Ed Lengel, Architect and Author Merlo Kelly, and Scottish Stonemason Charles Jones
James Hoban's life is a memorable Irish-American success story. In his boyhood he learned the craft of carpenter and wheelwright, and became an architect by profession and a builder by trade. Hoban came to America with high ambitions, and designed and erected many buildings; but what keeps his name alive today arises from one special commission—he was the architect of
