United States 1861-1866 issue

Lot 563 United States 1861-1866 issue

Scott73

Description

1866, 5c Blue (32). Used with United States 2c Black (73) and 3c Rose (65), 5c rounded corner, all stamps tied by cogwheel cancels, 2c tied by "San Francisco Cal. Oct. 8" double-circle datestamp (no year, light "1866") on cover to A. M. R. Fitzsimmons in Reading Pa., blue crayon "5", two thirds of backflap removed, small edge tears and slight wear VERY FINE APPEARANCE. A RARE UNITED STATES AND HAWAIIAN MIXED FRANKING WITH THE 2-CENT BLACK JACK AND 1866 5-CENT KAMEHAMEHA V ISSUE. Based on the use of the 5c 1866 Issue, this cannot be any earlier than 1866. By October 1867 the 10c blanket ship-letter rate applied to mail arriving on a contract steamer; however, mail from non-contract vessels was still rated at 5c (2c ship fee plus 3c domestic postage). The October 8 San Francisco datestamp coincides with the arrival of the contract steamer Idaho on October 8, 1867, but this is prepaid only 5c. The absence of Hawaiian postal markings suggests it was prepared for mailing in Honolulu, but was handed over to someone boarding the Idaho and was mailed in San Francisco as an ordinary letter. The Gregory book's sailing table notes "agents H. Hackfeld & Co. also sent a letter bag", so this was likely included in that bag. Either that or it was carried by a non-contract vessel and rated 5c. Ex Knapp (Knapp's note "From Warner Coll."), Worden, Faiman and Faust