Limited-edition Pictorial Postmark honors WHOI’s 90th Anniversary

This pictorial postmark, spearheaded by WHOI Senior Distribution Assistant David DuBois, commemorates WHOI’s 90th anniversary, January 6, 2020. (Created by Natalie Renier, ©Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

January 3, 2020

Public invited to commemorate the Institution’s longtime history

This year marks the 90^th Anniversary of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). Founded in 1930, WHOI is home to world’s top oceanographic researchers, engineers, and students, all dedicated to advancing knowledge of the ocean on the most pressing issues facing our planet.

To honor this milestone, WHOI employees produced a limited-edition Pictorial Postmark to be shared with the public on Monday, January 6, 2020. David DuBois, senior distribution assistant at WHOI, worked with WHOI’s Ocean Science Discovery Center manager and museum liaison Kathleen Patterson and graphic designer Natalie Renier of the WHOI Creative Studio to highlight this special occasion.

An avid stamp collector, DuBois has spearheaded two previous pictorial postmark events for WHOI. The first was in 2005 marking WHOI’s 75^th anniversary. The second was in 2018 celebrating the 5,000^th dive of the human-occupied submersible Alvin, which made its first dive in 1964 and gained prominence when researchers used it to investigate the wreck of the Titanic in the North Atlantic and to explore newly-discovered hydrothermal vents in the Pacific.

“It’s fun to mix the field of oceanography with a hobby like philately (the study of stamps and postal history),” says DuBois. “It is also a great way to spread word about WHOI’s mission.”

This current event celebrating WHOI’s 90^th anniversary is the first of several celebrations planned for 2020.

For future events, check www.whoi.edu/who-we-are/visit-whoi.

With strong ties to the community, WHOI provides free lectures and events to the public, is the second largest employer on Cape Cod, and supports the region in coastal planning, resource management, and habitat protection. Find out more at www.whoi.edu/press-room/news-release/whoi-economic-impacts-study-2019.

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, non-profit organization on Cape Cod, Mass., dedicated to marine research, engineering, and higher education. Established in 1930 on a recommendation from the National Academy of Sciences, its primary mission is to understand the oceans and their interaction with the Earth as a whole, and to communicate a basic understanding of the oceans’ role in the changing global environment. For more information, please visit www.whoi.edu.

When: Monday, January 6, 2020
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Where: Redfield Laboratory lobby
45 Water Street
Woods Hole, MA 02543

What: WHOI’s 90^th Anniversary Pictorial Postmark event. Bring your prepared, stamped envelopes or postcards to receive this one-of-a-kind postmark. If you can’t attend the event, the postmark will be available for 30 days by mailing your self-addressed postcard or envelope in another envelope to: