First American in Space, Mercury Astronaut late Alan Shepard, honoured with His Own Stamp

The first American in space, Mercury astronaut late Alan Shepard, was honoured with his own stamp on 4 May 2011 on the eve of the 50th anniversary of his flight. The success of Shepard's flight had helped lead America to the moon. Shepard later became the fifth man to walk on the moon. He died in 1998 at age 74.

The Postal Service dedicated the Forever stamp to commemorate Shepard's suborbital flight on 5 May 1961. He is the first astronaut to be honoured, all by himself, on a stamp.

Twenty Shepard family members, including the late astronaut's three daughters, gathered at Kennedy Space Center with more than 100 others for the afternoon ceremony, held in an outdoor rocket garden. A replica of the black and white Mercury Redstone rocket that propelled Shepard on his 15-minute journey rose behind the stage.

Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first man to go to space and he had defeated Alan Shepard by one month.