The David Golden Collection of Hawaiian Stamps and Postal History continued...

EXTREMELY FINE. AN OUTSTANDING AND EARLY EXAMPLE OF THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE USED TO PAY HAWAIIAN POSTAGE ON A COVER TO THE UNITED STATES.

This cover was carried on Her British Majesty's Frigate Amphitrite, which departed Honolulu on Oct. 9, 1853, and arrived in San Francisco on Oct. 28. From there it was sent to Panama on the California, which departed on Nov. 1 and arrived on Nov. 17. It was carried from Aspinwall to New York on the USMSC Illinois, which departed on Nov. 19 and arrived on Nov. 28.

Fred Gregory records a total of 40 covers bearing this issue, this being the third earliest use. The two earlier covers are dated July 3 and August 16.

Gregory Census No. 5-3. With 1968 P.F. certificate. (Image)

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A FINE COVER BEARING THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE.

This cover was carried on the schooner E. L. Frost, which departed Honolulu on Oct. 4, 1854, and arrived in San Francisco on Oct. 28. It was then carried to Panama on the John L. Stephens, which departed Nov. 1.

Gregory Census No. 5-5 (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE. AN EXTRAORDINARY COMBINATION OF HAWAIIAN POSTAGE AND THE UNITED STATES FREE-FRANKING PRIVILEGE. THIS IS THE ONLY RECORDED EXAMPLE OF THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE ON A COVER ON WHICH THE UNITED STATES POSTAGE WAS NEITHER CHARGED NOR PREPAID BY STAMPS.

Gregory Census No. 5-29. Ex Atherton, Honolulu Academy of Arts and Honolulu Advertiser. (Image)

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A VERY FINE AND RARE USE OF THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE ON COVER TO THE EASTERN UNITED STATES AT THE NEW 10-CENT TRANS-CONTINENTAL RATE PLUS SHIP CAPTAIN'S FEE.

This cover was carried on the bark Yankee, which departed Honolulu on July 3, 1855, and arrived in San Francisco on July 28. From there it was sent to Panama on the Golden Age. The postage components on this cover reflect an interesting change in U.S. rates before and after April 1, 1855. The U.S. over-3,000 miles prepaid rate was raised from 6c to 10c beginning on April 1, 1855 (and prepayment was made compulsory for letters posted in the U.S.). Therefore, prior to April 1, the prepaid postage charges on a letter from Hawaii to the eastern U.S. were 5c Hawaiian plus 8c U.S. (6c prepaid plus 2c ship captain's fee). If sent collect, the U.S. postage was 12c (10c unpaid rate plus 2c ship captain's fee). From April 1 on, the U.S. postage on Hawaiian letters was 12c, whether or not it was prepaid, despite the compulsory prepayment requirement for letters of U.S. origin. This cover and the covers in lots 239 and 240 show the subtle distinction. While all three are marked "Ship" and "12" cents due, the two sent prior to April 1855 were rated at the 10c unpaid rate (vs. 6c prepaid), while this cover was 12c due without penalty for non-prepayment.

Gregory Census No. 5-11. Ex Krug. Signed Ashbrook and with 1958 P.F. certificate (Image)

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EXTREMELY FINE. AN OUTSTANDING COVER FROM HAWAII TO CALIFORNIA, BEARING THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE AND "SHIP 6" CLAMSHELL MARKING. ONLY TWO ARE RECORDED WITH THIS MARKING.

This cover was carried on the bark Frances Palmer, which departed Honolulu on Mar. 19, 1855, and arrived in San Francisco on Apr. 16. Fred Gregory records a total of 40 covers bearing the 5c 1853 Issue, only two of which have the "Ship 6" clamshell marking. The 6c ship-letter rate applied only to mail addressed to the port of arrival, in this case, San Francisco and Sacramento were treated as the same destination.

Gregory Census No. 5-7. Ex Adm. Harris. With 1988 Holcombe certificate. (Image)

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A REMARKABLE COVER THAT TRAVELLED FROM HAWAII TO THE MORMON SETTLEMENT IN UTAH TERRITORY, THEN BACK FROM THE POST OFFICE AT SALT LAKE CITY TO HAWAII. ONLY FIVE COVERS TO UTAH TERRITORY ARE RECORDED WITH THE 1853 KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE (ALL 5-CENT). IN OUR OPINION, THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST REMARKABLE HAWAIIAN POSTAL HISTORY ITEMS EXTANT.

The first journey this cover made was from an unknown correspondent in Honolulu to Silas S. Smith in Parowan City, Utah Territory. Smith arrived in Hawaii in late 1854, shortly after this cover was put into the mails. It was carried from Honolulu to San Francisco on the schooner E. L. Frost, which departed on Oct. 3, 1854, and arrived on Oct. 28. San Francisco always postmarked mail for Panama on or near the day of departure, but in this case the cover was postmarked on Oct. 28, because it was sent south to San Pedro in order to make the next eastbound Chorpenning stagecoach trip from San Diego to Salt Lake City. In July 1854, Chorpenning renewed his monthly mail contract between California and Utah, but moved to a Salt Lake City-San Diego route. This "Old Spanish Trail" route connected with San Francisco by steamship. The 7c due included the 5c "under 3,000 miles" collect rate and 2c ship fee.

After arriving in Parowan, Utah, this envelope was opened, turned inside out and re-used by Sarah Ann (Ricks) Smith, one of Silas Smith's wives, to send "2 letters" to him in Honolulu. It was postmarked at Salt Lake City on Feb. 1, 1855, and made the westbound stagecoach trip on the same Chorpenning route to San Diego. From there it was sent north to San Francisco and was carried by ship to Honolulu. The long delay between the Feb. 1 Salt Lake City postmark date and Silas Smith's May 12 receipt docketing makes it difficult to pinpoint the sailing vessel that carried it from San Francisco to Honolulu.

The fascinating biography of Silas Sanford Smith can be found at http://www.hirf.org/history-bio-Smith-Silas-S.asp. We quote some of the relevant facts from this source: "...born in 1830 in St. Lawrence County, New York. His father, Silas Smith, was an uncle to the Prophet Joseph Smith (being a younger brother to Joseph Smith, Sr.). He was baptized into the Mormon Church in 1835 by his nephew, Hyrum, and remained faithful to it until his death... the Silas Smith family moved many times as a result of the persecutions suffered by the early Church. First was a move to Kirtland, Ohio, and two years later, a move to Missouri, from which they were driven by mobs in 1839. Silas Smith (Sr.) died at this time due to illness incurred during the family's flight from Missouri. Silas Sanford was nine-years-old at the time. He, his mother, and younger brother Jesse Nathaniel, eventually settled in Nauvoo, and were there at the time of the Prophet Joseph Smith's martyrdom. In 1847 they crossed the plains in the Perregrine Sessions' company and arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in late September 1847, a month before Silas Sanford's seventeenth birthday... In July 1851, he married Clarinda Ricks, and a few months later was called by the Church to settled in Parowan, to which the young couple embarked willingly that fall. Together, Silas and Clarinda became the parents of five children. In 1853, Silas Sanford Smith married a second wife, Sarah Ann Ricks, sister to Clarinda, with whom he had four children. At the time of this second marriage, Silas Sanford was serving in the military fighting in the Indian War of 1853. The next year, however, he was called on a mission to the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii). In order to afford the passage fare to the Islands, Silas worked for three months in San Francisco before departing. As a missionary he likewise worked hard and dedicated himself to learning the native language and preaching the gospel. He even served as a counselor in the mission presidency for a time before he returned home in 1856. Upon his return, Silas Sanford moved his family to Paragoonah, in Iron County, and became active again in military service. He gained the rank of major and was in charge of organizing and training local residents to defend their settlements. He learned to speak several Indian languages, and gained a reputation for being a fair-minded diplomat. Silas Sanford participated in the Black Hawk Indian War of 1860-1865, and was considered a wise military leader. In 1866, he led a group of seventy-six to establish a defensive fort -- named Fort Sanford -- in the area of Panguitch. In 1859, at age twenty-eight, Silas Sanford Smith was elected to the Utah Territorial Legislature as a representative."

Gregory Census No. 5-4. With 1975 P.F. certificate. See lot 55 for another cover from the Silas S. Smith correspondence (Image)

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A SPECTACULAR COVER THAT MADE A ROUND TRIP BETWEEN TWO PROMINENT MORMONS IN UTAH TERRITORY AND THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. ONLY FIVE COVERS TO UTAH TERRITORY ARE RECORDED WITH THE 1853 KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE (ALL 5-CENT). THIS IS BELIEVED TO BE THE ONLY COVER WITH THE FORWARDING NOTATION APPLIED BY JOHN T. CAINE, A MORMON MISSIONARY AND ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE CHURCH IN HAWAII.

The first journey this cover made was from Salt Lake City to San Diego on a regularly-scheduled Chorpenning stagecoach trip. In July 1854, Chorpenning renewed his monthly mail contract between California and Utah, but moved to a Salt Lake City-San Diego route. This "Old Spanish Trail" route connected with San Francisco by steamships via San Pedro. Postmarked at Salt Lake City on Mar. 1, 1855, the cover should have reached San Francisco at the end of March, in time to catch the Apr. 7 departure of the Restless, which arrived in Honolulu on Apr. 23 (Caine's forwarding notation "24th" fits this chronology).

Orson K. Whitney used the same envelope to enclose a letter dated May 9, 1855 (based on docketing). The 5c 1853 Issue stamp paid Hawaiian postage, and we can assume that Orson Whitney applied a U.S. 3c 1851 stamp on the assumption that it would pay postage from California to Utah. The cover was carried on the Pons Aelii, which departed Honolulu on May 12, 1855, and arrived in San Francisco on June 6. From there it was sent to San Pedro, in order to catch the eastbound Chorpenning stagecoach departure. The July 21 receipt docketing suggests it might not have made it in time.

Horace K. Whitney and his brother Orson K. were well-known Mormon elders, whose biographies may be read from several sources. A biography of John T. Caine, who marked this cover when it arrived in Hawaii, can be found at Google Books (History of Utah, Orgus F. Whitney): "The date of his departure from home was May 4th, 1854. Among his fellow-missionaries to the islands were such men as Joseph F. Smith, Silas Smith, Edward Partridge, William W. Cluff, Henry P. Richards, S. M. Molen. Ward E. Pack, Orson K. Whitney and William King. They accompanied President Young and party as far as Cedar City, and thence, under the leadership of Parley P. Pratt, proceeded to San Bernardino, which was then a Mormon colony. They traveled with wagons and saddle horses, riding at night, resting and sleeping by day, to avoid the intense heat of the desert. At San Bernardino, where they were kindly received by Presidents Lyman and Rich and others in charge, they sold their outfits for barely enough to enable them to reach San Francisco, for which place they set out from San Pedro by steamer. During the summer, in order to secure funds to pay their passage to the islands, the missionaries sought employment in and around San Francisco. Elder Caine had the temerity to hire out as a cook, at a ranch where threshing was in progress. Finally all reached the islands, but not by the same vessel. His was the brig 'Susan Abigail,' which arrived at Honolulu the day before Christmas. At the first conference of the Hawaiian Mission after his arrival there, Elder Caine was appointed counselor to Elder Silas Smith, who was made president. Elder Caine also presided over the Oahu conference. He lived most of the time at Honolulu, where some one was needed to attend to correspondence, transact Church business, and represent the mission in controversies arising from time to time with the Hawaiian government, owing to anti-Mormon influences. While thus engaged, he answered an attack upon the people of Utah, and secured its publication in the 'Polynesian,'' the government's official organ. This was the first Mormon defense published in a Hawaiian newspaper. Elder Caine had charge of an English-speaking branch of the Church, largely made up of emigrants from Australia, detained at Honolulu, their vessel having been condemned as unseaworthy. Owing to his residence at that place, where English was very generally spoken, he never acquired a perfect knowledge of the Hawaiian tongue. The climate of the islands did not agree with him, and.this, with the fact that his presence was needed at home, induced President Young to send for him earlier than had been designed. Sailing from Honolulu August 1st, 1856, he arrived on the 24th at San Francisco, where he remained for a time, doing what service he could among the Saints in that vicinity. In October he set out for home."

Gregory Census No. 5-10. With 1966 P.F. certificate (Image)

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VERY FINE. A BEAUTIFUL MIXED-FRANKING COVER WITH THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE AND UNITED STATES 12-CENT 1851 ISSUE.

This cover was carried on the schooner L. P. Foster, which departed Honolulu on Dec. 6, 1856, and arrived at San Francisco on Dec. 22. From there it was then sent to Panama on the Jan. 5, 1857, sailing of the John L. Stephens.

Gregory Census No. 5-30. Ex Baker and Haas (Image)

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VERY FINE. A GORGEOUS MIXED-FRANKING COVER WITH THE 1853 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA III ISSUE AND UNITED STATES 12-CENT 1851 ISSUE.

This cover was carried on the bark Frances Palmer, which departed Honolulu on Dec. 8, 1856, and arrived in San Francisco on Dec. 22. From there it was sent to Panama on the Jan. 5, 1857, sailing of the John L. Stephens. Although carried from Honolulu to San Francisco on different ships with different arrival dates, the covers in lots 246 and 247 were bagged for Panama on Jan. 5 and carried by the same vessel.

Gregory Census No. 5-32. Ex Caspary and Krug (Image)

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VERY FINE. THE ONLY RECORDED EXAMPLE OF A HAWAIIAN STAMP USED ON A UNITED STATES 10-CENT NESBITT ENTIRE.

This cover was carried on the brig Agate, which departed Honolulu on Dec. 10, 1855, and arrived in San Francisco on Dec. 27. It was postmarked in San Francisco on Jan. 5 (1857) when the mail was bagged for Panama. The receipt docketing identifies the letter writer as D. C. Waterman, head of a prominent Honolulu shipping and commercial firm, and gives the letter date as Dec. 11, 1855. This is one day after the Agate is reported cleared from Honolulu in published sailing records. This date sequence and the absence of a Honolulu postmark suggest two possibilities. The first is that Waterman handed his letter to someone boarding the ship and asked them to mail it in San Francisco (if this occurred, then the sailing date was actually Dec. 11). The other possibility is that the letter was posted on board the Agate and given to the ship purser to add to the mail. In either case, the 5c Hawaiian stamp was affixed but not cancelled in Honolulu. After arrival in San Francisco, the cover was sent to Panama on the Golden Gate, which departed on Jan. 5.

The U.S. over-3,000 miles prepaid rate was raised from 6c to 10c, beginning on April 1, 1855 (and prepayment was made compulsory for letters posted in the U.S.). The Hawaiian stamp was intended to pay the rate for internal Hawaiian postage. Normally this letter would have been charged 2c for the ship captain's fee plus the 10c for U.S. postage, but there is no indication of how the ship fee was paid.

Fred Gregory records a total of 40 examples of Scott No. 5 on cover. Only one is known used solely with a 10c stamp (Siegel 1999 Rarities sale, lot 60). This use on a 10c Nesbitt entire is the only recorded Hawaiian Kamehameha Issue mixed franking with a U.S. embossed envelope stamp.

Gregory Census No. 5-16. Ex Seybold, Barkhausen and Krug. With 1964 P.F. certificate. (Image)

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