ONE of the most unusual ship stamp designs is that issued by the U.S.A. to commemorate the centenary of the International Red Cross in October 1963. The theme of this 5 cent stamp points to the role of the Red Cross in the historic Cuban prisoner exchange. Between December 1962 and July 1963, no less than 1,113 Bay of Pigs prisoners and 7,857 Cuban civilians were transported to freedom in the United States.
The stamp shows a group of refugees on the deck of the steamer Morning Light, silhouetted against the sky, while above them flies the Red Cross flag. It is based on a photograph taken by Mr.Rudolph Vetter, of the American Red Cross, at the moment the ship docked at Port Everglades on May 24, 1963, carrying 751 refugees.
Built in 1944 by the Moore Dry Dock Company, Oakland, California, the Morning Light is owned by the Waterman Steamship Corporation, of Mobile, Alabama. She has a gross tonnage of 8,210 and a deadweight of 10,444 tons on dimensions 459 ft. 6 in. (overall) x 63 ft 1 in. x 40 ft. 6 in. Draft is 27 ft. 8 in. Propelling machinery consists of two G.E.C. double-reduction geared turbines driving a single screw to give a speed of 16 knots.