HAWAII, 1853, 13c Dark Red, Thick White Wove (6). Three large margins, including part of adjoining stamp at left, clear to ample at bottom, rich color, tied by well-struck red “Honolulu * U.S. Postage Paid * Dec. 28” (1855) circular datestamp on bluish-gray folded letter datelined “Hilo, December 7, 1855” from Benjamin Pitman, Postmaster of Hilo, and addressed to W. R. Post at Sag Harbor, Long Island, New York, sent from Hilo to Honolulu where the 13c stamp was cancelled and a United States 1851 12c Black (17), ample margins to just touched, was affixed, tied by “San Francisco Cal. 21 Jan.” (1856) circular datestamp, forwarded to Southampton N.Y. with bold “Sag Harbor N.Y. Feb. 18” circular datestamp and additional rate “Forwarded 3” in manuscript, light vertical file fold at center well clear of stamps

EXTREMELY FINE. ONE OF THREE RECORDED COVERS FROM HILO TO THIS ADDRESSEE, MAILED IN SEQUENCE WITH MIXED FRANKINGS, DEMONSTRATING THE IMPROVISED USE OF THE 1853 13-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE AFTER THE APRIL 1855 RATE CHANGE.

This letter was carried on the bark Yankee, which departed Honolulu on Jan. 3, 1856, and arrived in San Francisco on Jan. 17. From there it was carried to Panama on the PMSC John L. Stephens, which departed on Jan. 21 and arrived on Feb. 5. It was then carried on the USMSC St. Louis, which departed Aspinwall Feb. 5 and arrived in New York Feb. 14.

Based on the content of the three letters from this correspondence, we know that the Hilo postmaster, Benjamin Pitman, mailed three sequential letters to the same addressee-- William R. Post--each containing installment bills of exchange for proceeds from the ship Ontario. This Dec. 7, 1855, folded letter, the subsequent Dec. 13 folded letter (Golden sale, lot 254) and the Dec. 23 folded letter (Honolulu Advertiser sale, lot 90) comprise the three letters. In addition, Pitman also wrote from Hilo to Mrs. Sally Pitman (his mother) in Boston on May 13, 1856 (lot 26 in this sale).

The three December letters were forwarded from Hilo to Honolulu over a two-week period, but they remained at the Honolulu office until the Yankee was cleared for departure on Jan. 3, 1856, arriving in San Francisco on Jan. 17. On this and the Dec. 13 letter, the 13c Kamehameha III stamps were used (presumably with cash) to prepay the 17c rate. For the final letter (Dec. 23), the postmaster had a 5c Kamehameha III stamp and used it with the 13c. We can be certain that the U.S. 12c stamps were affixed in Honolulu, because the last cover is a paste-over franking, and the red Honolulu datestamp ties the 12c together with the Hawaiian stamps. The addressee, William R. Post, was a resident of Southampton, and the three letters were forwarded from the port of Sag Harbor on the same day, February 18, postage due 3c each. William R. Post (1811-1889) was town supervisor of Southampton from 1852 to 1855 (and again from 1865 to 1876). His mansion still stands in the village.

The correspondence was preserved and sold intact to one of the earliest American cover collectors, John F. Seybold. After the Seybold collection was dispersed, the covers went separate ways into the collections of Tows (Dec. 7), Knapp (Dec. 13) and West (Dec. 23). Two of the three (Dec. 13 and 23) were reunited in the Honolulu Advertiser collection. The Dec. 7 cover is offered here, as is the Sally Pitman letter.

Gregory Census No. 13-16 (Fig. 16-15). Ex John F. Seybold, Ferrars H. Tows, Philip G. Rust and Charles Pietsch. With 1987 P.F. certificate.

Image Magnifier / Download

Power Search for Comparables