Exhibits

The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History will showcase a new permanent exhibit called Nuclear by Mail, opening to the public on Saturday, August 7^th. Nuclear by Mail chronicles the development of nuclear science and technologies in the 20th century as told through the mail. This exhibit will showcase the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History’s collection of mail-related artifacts including stamps, envelopes, postcards, and photographs.

Stamp and mail memorabilia collecting have created an industry that boomed during the 20th century at the same time as the birth of the Atomic Age. These two industries were growing and modernizing in tandem and share an important history that is evident in the museum's collection.

Nuclear by Mail is primarily based on two collections donated to the Museum by Steve Stow, a collector with an expansive collection of nuclear-themed stamps from around the world in two large, annotated volumes of stamps. Stow amassed this collection during his career working at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and with the Department of Energy. After accumulating most of the nuclear stamps available on the market, Stow moved on to the subject of minerals for his stamp collecting but hoped that others could learn from this collection by donating it to the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History. This collection will be displayed on two touch screens in the exhibit, along with other artifacts.

The main collection of artifacts comes from Bill Pedace who donated his collection of Naval Covers - General Dynamics cachets and envelopes for US Navy ships - that he acquired over the span of 37 years working for General Dynamics.

Nuclear by Mail will be included with the price of admission into the museum.

This special exhibition is sponsored New Mexico Mutual.