Sale 1045 — The Steven C. Walske Collection of Hawaiian Postal History
Sale Date — Tuesday, 25 June, 2013
Category — Fourth Treaty Period
HAWAII, 1861, 5c Blue, Thin Bluish Wove (9). Ample to large margins, deep rich color, tied by square grid cancel, “Honolulu Hawaiian-Islands Jan. 19” circular datestamp on cover to San Francisco, “San Francisco Cal. Feb. 9, 1864” double-circle datestamp and “DUE 6” straightline handstamp, the datestamp also ties stamp and the due marking indicates proper rate for a ship letter addressed to port of entryEXTREMELY FINE. THE 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III 1861 THIRD PRINTING ON BLUISH PAPER IS SCARCE ON COVER. THIS CHOICE TIED EXAMPLE IS A RARE USE TO THE PORT OF SAN FRANCISCO WITH “DUE 6” RATE.
Gregory reports 50 covers with the 5c Third Printing (Scott 9), but only 15 are covers with this stamp used alone (not in combination with United States stamps). Only one other is addressed to San Francisco, and the cover offered here is the only one with the “Due 6” straightline. It was carried on the Comet, departing Honolulu on Jan. 21, 1864, arriving in San Francisco on Feb. 9.
Letters from Hawaii to San Francisco showing the 1863 rates are discussed in the Gregory book (Volume II, pages 165-169). The San Francisco post office inconsistently applied the 4c and 6c collect rates. Six examples are recorded by Gregory.
Ex Honolulu Advertiser and Twigg-Smith. With 2007 P.F. certificate.
HAWAII, 1865, 5c Blue on Blue (21). Plate 9-A, Ty. VIII and X (Westerberg Positions 4 and 2), singles of each, tied by large 3-ring target cancels, additional pen strokes, used with United States 1861-63 3c Rose, 5c Brown (65, 76), tied by cogwheel cancels, red “Honolulu U.S. Postage Paid Apr. 4” (1866) large circular datestamp, black “San Francisco Cal. Apr. 18” double-circle datestamp on cover to John F. Rogers in Lowell, Mass., corners where stamps affixed torn off but then expertly restored, during the process the stamps were removed and replaced on cover where they originated, left Hawaii stamp repaired, both Hawaii stamps light horizontal crease, U.S. 5c stamp small tear at upper rightVERY FINE APPEARANCE. A RARE DOUBLE-RATE COVER WITH MIXED FRANKING OF HAWAIIAN NUMERALS AND UNITED STATES 1861-63 ISSUES.
This was carried on the Ajax, which departed Honolulu April 4 and arrived in San Francisco April 17. It was endorsed “Per Steamer Panama” at lower left by the sender. This was actually carried on the PMSC Sacramento, which arrived in Panama May 1, then by the USMSC New York, which departed Aspinwall May 2 and arrived in its namesake city on May 9. The double rate pays 10c Hawaiian postage and 6c U.S. postage plus 2c ship letter fee. This 1866 trip of the Ajax from Hawaii preceded the start of contract steamship service, so the normal 1863 rate applied.
Illustrated and described in the Gregory book (Vol. 2, pp. 196-197). Ex Knapp, Juhring, Honolulu Advertiser and Kramer. With 2003 P.F. certificate.
HAWAII, 1866, 5c Blue (32). Rich color, used with United States 1863 5c Brown (76), tied together by large three-ring target cancel, red “Honolulu U.S. Postage Paid Feb. 23” (1867) circular datestamp on orange cover to Capt. Samuel Conde in Chittenango N.Y., endorsed “via San Francisco” and with “San Francisco Cal. Mar. 13” double-circle datestamp, U.S. 5c also tied by cogwheel cancelVERY FINE. A BEAUTIFUL MIXED-FRANKING COVER BEARING THE 1866 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA V ISSUE AND THE UNITED STATES 5-CENT 1863 ISSUE.
This cover was carried on the D. C. Murray, which departed Honolulu Feb. 23, 1867, and arrived in San Francisco March 12. It was then sent overland to the East Coast.
Ex Myerson. With 2000 P.F. certificate
HAWAII, 1866, 5c Blue (32). Tied by large 7-bar grid cancel, used with vertical pair of United States 1863 5c Brown (76), perfect strike of red “Honolulu U.S. Postage Paid Oct. 5” (1868) circular datestamp, 5c pair tied by clear strike of red “Hawaiian Steam Service” oval handstamp on cover to Mrs. Charles Montgomery in East Hardwick Vt., U.S. stamps cancelled by quartered corks, “San Francisco Cal. Oct. 19” circular datestamp, barely reduced at right, both U.S. stamps with parts of perfs and margins torn away at lower rightVERY FINE APPEARANCE. AN ATTRACTIVE “HAWAIIAN STEAM SERVICE” COVER WITH THE 1866 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA V AND UNITED STATES 5-CENT BROWN 1863 ISSUE MIXED FRANKING.
This was carried on the Idaho, which departed Honolulu Oct. 5, 1868, and arrived in San Francisco Oct. 18. According to the Gregory book, this was the last regular North Pacific Transportation Company sailing to use the “Honolulu U.S. Postage Paid” marking.
During the contract steamer period, mail addressed to the U.S. was charged 5c Hawaiian and 10c U.S. postage, regardless of destination. As such, lower rates to San Francisco no longer applied. The “Hawaiian Steam Service” oval was applied regularly to contract steamship mail from November 1867 to August 1869.
Illustrated and described in the Gregory book (Vol. 2, p. 237). Ex Kramer. With 2003 P.F. certificate.
HAWAII, 1866, 5c Blue (32). Rich color, tied by 7-bar grid cancel, used with United States 1861 10c Green (68), matching “Honolulu Hawaiian-Islands Oct. 24” (1868) circular datestamp on yellow cover to Mr. Charles C. Coleman in San Francisco, light strike of red “Hawaiian Steam Service” handstamp at bottom center, 10c cancelled by circle of V’s, neat “San Francisco Cal. Nov. 8” double-circle datestamp, additional “San Francisco Cal. Nov. 9” circular datestamp, 5c stamp small corner nick at bottom left, cover slightly reduced at left and with tiny corner repair at top leftVERY FINE APPEARANCE. AN ATTRACTIVE 1866 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA V AND 10-CENT 1861 ISSUE MIXED-FRANKING COVER WITH “HAWAIIAN STEAM SERVICE” HANDSTAMP.
According to the Gregory book (Vol. 2, p. 239), starting with the Oct. 24 sailing of the Montana (arrived San Francisco Nov. 8) the “Honolulu Hawaiian-Islands” marking, struck in black, was first used on fully prepaid covers. On the same date, the Pacific Commercial Advertiser published a notice stating that payment of U.S. postage with U.S. stamps was required. This short-lived regulation contravened postal laws allowing for foreign mail to be sent unpaid.
Illustrated in Gregory book (Vol. 2, p. 239). With 2007 P.F. certificate.
HAWAII, Forwarded by H. Hackfield & Co., Honolulu H.I. Two 1864 covers to Rheims, France, each with clear strike of oval forwarder’s handstamp, “Honolulu U.S. Postage Paid” Jul. 20 and Jul. 9 circular datestamps, both with crayon “32c” rates (one red, other blue), appropriate transit markings, unfortunately stamps missing from both, but still Very Fine and unusual, the Jul. 9 cover (shown above) carried on the Smyrniote to San Francisco and sent overland to New York where mistakenly bagged with closed mail to Prussia, on arrival it received an “Aachen Franco” boxed datestamp but the error was noticed and the letter was returned to New York where it received the 36c credit datestamp in error, this was then overstruck by the 18c credit datestamp (also incorrect but not corrected), it was then carried by the Cunarder Persia and eventually reached France in October, the second cover must have been held in San Francisco as it reached New York Oct. 8 (almost two months after arrival in San Francisco), a wonderful pair of covers, illustrated and described in the Gregory book (Vol. II, pp. 283-285), ex Noel
“Nukuhiva Nov. 26 1865”. Dateline on folded letter from Nukahiva in the Marqueses Islands to Hawaii via Tahiti and San Francisco, written in Hawaiian from James Kekela to Rev. Dwight Baldwin at Lahaina, light strike of “Tahiti (Oceania), Papeete, 20 Dec. 65” double-circle datestamp on back, bold “San Francisco Cal. Mar. 14” (1866) double-circle datestamp and “SHIP 6” handstamp, red crayon “13c” Hawaiian postage due marking (6c U.S., 5c Hawaiian and 2c ship fee), receipt docketing “Rev. J. Kekela, Nov. 26/65”, light vertical file folds, some minor toningVERY FINE. AN EXTREMELY RARE EXAMPLE OF MAIL FROM THE MISSIONARY SETTLEMENT AT NUKUHIVA IN FRENCH POLYNESIA TO HAWAII VIA TAHITI AND SAN FRANCISCO WITH POSTMARKS OF THREE DIFFERENT POSTAL SYSTEMS.
Nukuhiva is the largest of the Marqueses Islands in French Polynesia. Herman Melville wrote Typee based on his experiences on the island. In 1853 the Rev. James Kekela went as a pioneer missionary to the Marquesas Islands, where for a half-century he worked to eliminate cannibalism and tribal warfare. In 1864 he was honored by President Lincoln for rescuing an American seaman from cannibals.
There was a regular sailing packet line between Papeete and San Francisco, with six sailings per year. This arrangement was reached between Tahiti and the San Francisco post office to facilitate the island’s communications with the outside world. The line operated from July 20, 1863, to October 30, 1867. The letter offered here missed the December 1865 packet and had to wait for the February 1866 packet (scheduled to depart February 20). It was carried on the schooner Eugenie, which departed Tahiti on February 22 and arrived in San Francisco on March 12. From there it was carried on the Helen Angier, which departed March 19 and arrived in Honolulu on April 8.
Illustrated and described in the Gregory book (Vol. 2, p. 304), which notes this should have been charged 2c in San Francisco (double the 1c drop rate) instead of 6c (double the 3c rate to a U.S. domestic destination). The red manuscript “13c” indicates the recipient was charged the 6c, plus 2c ship fee and 5c Hawaiian postage.
Ex Golden.