Missisippi

Pictured above is a U.S. commemorative stamp from 1948 - Scott #955. It was issued to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the Mississippi Terriroty.

Pictured on the stamp are the state map, the Seal of Mississippi Territory, and Governor Winthrop Sargent.

Note the spelling on the seal: "Seal of the Missisippi Territory." To my understanding, this is not an error by the stamp designer, William K. Schrage, who faithfully copied the official seal of the territory. According to a brief blurb in Time magazine (02/23/48), the name was spelled that way on the territory's original seal, though later changed to the current spelling when the state itself was created.

The Great Seal of the State of Minnesota also had a spelling mistake in its early history: "A Latin phrase, "Quae sursum volo videre" (translation: “I wish to see what is beyond”) was intended to be the Territory's motto. Unfortunately, when the seal was engraved the phrase was misspelled. "Quo sursum velo videre" doesn't make much sense in Latin, but is most closely translated as "I cover to see what is above.""

A better image of the Mississippi Territory stamp is available at the National Postal Museum, but reproduction here would require permission which I haven't time to obtain.