The first general issue postage stamps went on sale in New York City, July 1, 1847. It was priced at five cents, depicted Benjamin Franklin and could be glued to an envelope. Before that letters were written on large sheets of paper and folded into an approximate size. You took that letter to your local Post Office, paid the correct rate and the postmaster or clerk hand stamped or wrote the amount paid on your letter before it went into the mail stream. Once 'stamped' in ink or manuscript cancelled the piece of mail was recognized, by postal workers, as paid and moved forward to its destination. This practice continued for a few years, after 1847, in areas where what we call 'stamps' today were not yet available.