HAY RIVER - In what is believed to be a first, a Canadian postage stamp will feature a scene from Hay River.

The stamp, which will be issued on July 6, will contain the image of an Inukshuk, built in 1978 for the Arctic Winter Games.

This postage stamp, which will be issued on July 6, features an Inukshuk in Hay River. - image courtesy of Canada Post

Chris Robinson, a stamp collector in Hay River, said he can categorically state there has been no other stamp specifically featuring Hay River.

"There would be nothing on Hay River, I'm sure," he said, adding he has stamps dating back to the time of Queen Victoria.

Nicole Lemire, a spokesperson for Canada Post in Ottawa, is also not aware of any other postage stamp featuring Hay River.

The 54-cent stamp – which will have a printing of one million copies – will be one of four issued in a set called 'Roadside Attractions'.

Lemire said the stamps will highlight unusual, fun and sometimes quirky attractions found along Canadian roads.

"They really speak to the fun of the countryside," she said.

In the next couple of years, there will be eight more similarly-themed stamps in a series called 'Road Trip'.

Along with the Hay River Inukshuk, this year's stamps feature the Ukrainian Easter egg in Vegreville, Alta.; the Watson Lake, Yukon, signpost forest; and Mr. PG, a eight-metre-high log man in Prince George, B.C.

"They're wonderful stamps," Lemire said.

Robinson said being featured on a stamp is unusual recognition for a small community like Hay River. "I think it's pretty amazing," he said.

However, Robinson said the Inukshuk itself is not really representative of the Hay River area.

Inukshuks are an ancient Inuit tradition of building stone markers to guide travellers through the landscape of the Far North. There will be an unveiling ceremony of a framed enlargement of the stamp in Hay River on July 6.

"People will get a chance to see it on the day it's issued," said Councillor Ken Latour, who is organizing the event.

Latour believes the stamp is a great thing for Hay River.

"I think it raises the profile of the town," he said, adding it should help promote tourism.

Lemire had no specific information on how the Hay River Inukshuk was chosen for a stamp.

However, she said Canada Post receives hundreds of suggestions for stamps each year and they are reviewed by a stamp advisory committee.

"Every suggestion is considered," she said, adding sometimes 20 or more people could suggest the same idea for a stamp.

Using photographs, the stamp was designed by Fraser Ross of Semaphor Design Co. in Halifax, N.S., and illustrated by Bonnie Ross, also of Nova Scotia.