THIS WILL BE THE LAST EDITION OF THE BULLETIN AS A … Pacific Bulletin/Bulletin 76.pdf · U.S. PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN An Occasional Newsletter about U.S. Post Offices in the Pacific

U.S. PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN

An Occasional Newsletter about U.S. Post Offices in the Pacific area (including Guam, Midway Is., the Commonwealth of theNorthern Mariana Islands, American Samoa and the successor administrations in the Caroline, Marshall and Line islands –

including the Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands & Republic of Palau) Website: https://sites.google.com/site/pacificislanditems/united-states-pacific-islands-bulletin

******************************************************************************************************ISSUE NUMBER SEVENTY SIX MARCH 2016

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THIS WILL BE THE LAST EDITION OF THE BULLETIN AS A REGULARPUBLICATION – IT WILL ALSO BE THE LAST EDITION I WILL ISSUE

IN PRINTED FORMAT.IN FUTURE I HOPE TO PUBLISH THE BULLETIN ON LINE ON THE BULLETIN WEBSITE (WITH THE HELP OF JIM MULIK AND STEVE ZIRINSKY WHO MAINTAIN THE TWO SITES) AS AND WHEN I HAVE AT LEAST ONE PAGE OF MATERIAL. I WILL E-MAIL THOSE READERS I HAVE AN E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR ON EACH OCCASION A BULLETIN IS PUBLISHED. I HOPE READERS WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE MATERIAL FOR THE ON LINE BULLETIN – YOU CAN CONTACT ME AT [email protected].

ANY EXCESS SUBSCRIPTION FUNDS TO THE PRINTED BULLETIN I HOLD WILL – AS FAR AS POSSIBLE – BE RETURNED TO SUBSCRIBERS WITH THIS EDITION

The Bulletin was set up as a reader supported publication and for most of the time I have published it almost all of the content has been provided by readers – I am very grateful to all those contributors over the past thirteen years, the fact the Bulletin has lasted for Thirteen years is a tribute of the readers – I certainly didn't expect it to last for more than 3 or 4 years – However in recent years contributions have dwindled and only a small amount of material is sent to me each year – To compound the problemthe Island Post Offices have ceased responding to enquiries and in most cases fail to respond to requests for stamped addressed envelopes to be cancelled. This is especially the case with FSM offices.

MY SPECIAL THANKS TO JIM MULIK, STEVEN ZIRINSKY, GEORGE N. BAKA, BERND NEUHAUS, CY KITCHING & DAVE TRUTWIN WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED REGULARLY IN RECENT YEARS & TO DON PETERSON FOR ALLOWING ME TO SEE THE USPPS PUBLICATION POSSESSIONS. I CANNOT LIST ALL THOSE WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE BULLETIN SINCE THE FIRST ISSUE IN 1993, BUT I MUST ESPECIALLY MENTION THOSEWHO HELPED AND ENCOURAGED ME IN THE EARLY YEARS – IN PARTICULAR HOWARD LEE, GEORGE MACHADO JR., CY KITCHING & JOEL FASSLER – CREATER OF THE SECOND BULLETIN WEBSITE FOLLOWING THE CRASH OF MY SITE – SORRY IF I HAVE OVERLOOKED ANYONE – THERE HAVE BEEN SO MANY OVER THE YEARS

IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE PRODUCING THE BULLETIN PLEASE LET ME KNOW AND I WILL CONTACT THE (MUCH REDUCED) CURRENT SUBSCRIBERS WITH YOUR CONTACT DETAILS *****************************************************************************************Steven Zirinsky continues to develop the philatelic publications area on his Zirinsky stamps site– the latest addition being a dated list of Kosrae cancellations listed by type. The site also includes back issues of the Bulletin and the Bulletin Addenda in addition to a complete run of the earlier U.S. Pacific Islands publication – Michael Mochizuky's U. S. Pacific Islands Newsletter.****************************************************************************

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 2

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We are less than Two months away from the 2016 World Stamp Show to be held at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City from Saturday, May 28 to Saturday, June 4, 2016 where The U.S. Possessions Philatelic Society will be sharing a table with the IPPS and other U.S. possessions related societies. Len McMaster – Editor of the Philatelic Society publication Possessions tells me that Bulletin readers will be welcome at the table. You can contact Len at [email protected]. A meeting of U.S. Possessions collectors is scheduled for Monday May 30 2016 from 11 am to 1 pm at the show. *****************************************************************************************AMERICAN SAMOA : Pago Pago used the APDS Illustration 57/1 on a philatelic cover on Jan 21 2016.****************************************************************************

AMERICAN SAMOA – PAGO PAGO FIRST FLIGHT 1931: Thanks to Steven Zirinsky for sight of the cover shown below as Illustration 76/1 – The Pago Pago cancellation appears to be Murphy 2.9 .

Illustration 76/1

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 3

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OTHER PUBLICATIONSAmerican Samoa is Fascinating by A.J. Savakis, appearing in The Machine Cancel Forum, [Issue No. 254 (October 2015), PP. 5553–5556] discusses the flag machine cancels, both the flag cancel and postmark dies, used in Pago Pago from 1924-1936, and asking collectors to report examples, particularly from 1934 when both machines were used. Mr. Savakis is editor of The Machine Cancel Forum and can be contacted through [email protected]. Reported in Possessions Fourth Quarter 2015. ****************************************************************************

GUAM – UNIVERSITY OF GUAM STATION: Used Illustration 55/18 on a philatelic cover on Oct 15 2015.****************************************************************************

MARSHALL ISLANDS – ULIGA MAJURO/A : Illustration 75/8 showed a Majuro Uliga/B cancellation dated Sep 03 2013 with a size of 38mm measured rim to rim across the date. All cancels of this design previously reported measured 43 mm. A philatelic cover dated Dec 28 2015 was cancelled by Majuro Uliga/A also 38mm across the date. See Illustration 76/2 below. The cover also had a Honolulu HI 967 machinecancel dated 28 DEC 2015

Illustration 76/2*****************************************************************************************MARSHALL ISLANDS – ULIGA MAJURO /B:Jim Mulik reports receipt of a package cancelled by Majuro Uliga/B – size 38mm - dated Feb 25 2016 – the stamps were covered by Sellotape, an unfortuate habit of Uliga P.O. See Illustration 76/3 on Page 4.

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 4

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Illustration 76/3****************************************************************************

MARSHALL ISLANDS – KWAJALEIN MIPS POST OFFICE: In November 2012 Steven Zirinsky obtained speciman examples of most of the new single circle style cancellations held at Majuro Post Office ready for distribution. These included the surprise inclusion of a Kwajalein A cancellation. I have written a couple of times to the MIPS Post Office on Kwajalein and on one occasion a did receive a cover cancelled by Kwajalein A on Nov 11 2014 - BUT with a Honolulu transit of Apr 11 2014 and received here in the UK on 25 April 2014. I suspect this cancellation was applied at Majuro. (See Bulletin # 73)I have also written several letters to both the Postmaster at Majuro and the Postal Clerk at APO AP 96555 (Kwajalein) asking if the Kwajalein MIPS Post Office was operational but have never received a response – though sometimes the envelope I enclosed for reply was returned. Late last year I decided to try a more direct approach and sent a letter to Majuro with the simplequestion – "Could you tell me if you have a Post Office at Kwajalein – Please write yes or no below and return this letter in the enclosed envelope" – The answer came back "NO". Although information from Majuro has not always been reliable in the past I'm inclined to believe this response. Has anyone got a view on this – or other information?

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U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 5

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MARSHALL ISLANDS – ENEWETOK MYSTERY CANCELLATION:

Thanks to Jim Mulik for drawing my attention to a postcard currently advertised on e-Bay at $29.99. The cover is shown below as Illustration 76/4.

Illustration 76/4

To the best of my knowledge there was no Post Office on Enewetok at the time. Has anyone seen anything similar or can anyone provide any information about the item.The cancellation itself appears to be based on Enewetok Murphy 1.2 in use at the U.S. Militaryfacility on Enewetok between Feb 1961 and August 1965. Murphy 1.2 was however part of amachine cancellation. The cancellation on Illustration 76/4 follows the Illustration Murphy 1.2 in A Postal History/Cancellation Study of the U.S. Pacific Islands by Robert T. Murphy exactly even to the time 10.00 AM appearing below the year. An example of Murphy 1.2 is shown on Page 6 as Illustration 76/5, but on this example the time appears in the correct place– above the Month and day.

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 6

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Illustration 76/5

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REPUBLIC OF PALAU – NEW CANCELLATIONS ?

Jim Mulik has drawn my attention to two further postcards with odd postmarks from our area of interest – These are also priced at $29.99 by a vendor in Greece. The same vendor is advertising a range of postcards apparently clearly cancelled with what appear to be legitimate postmarks from the Pacific. Jim noted Vanuatu, Kiribati & Tuvalu. Other postcards I have seen from this vendor have postmarks from the former USSR & Malta.

On Pages 7 to 10 two of the vendors Palau postcards are shown together with covers from my collection with what appears to be the same or very similar postmarks.

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 7

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Illustration 76/6

A Palau First Day cover with a similar datestamp is shown on Page 8 as Illustration 76/7. I donot have an example of an operational cancellation similar to the one in Illustration 76/6, but the First Day example shown as Illustration 76/7 is very similar.

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 8

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Illustration 76/7

Another postcard with a different Koror cancellation is shown on Page 9 as Illustration 76/8

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 9

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Illustration 76/8

A Palau FDC with a similar cancellation is shown on Page 9 as Illustration 76/9 – But I have only ever seen this used in the 1980's on FDC's of postal stationery. I believe that cancellation to have been used at the Palau Philatelic Agency in the U.S.

U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016Page 10

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Illustration 76/9

*****************************************************************************************KOROR RP 96940: Steven Zirinsky has submitted a new Koror datestamp dated APR 24 2016. See Illustration 76/6 below - this example appeared on the Customs form attached to a package received by Steven

Illustration 76/10

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U.S PACIFIC ISLANDS BULLETIN NO 76 - MARCH 2016PAGE 11

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COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS

SAN JOSE CPU BRANCH/TINIAN MP 96952 :

This office used Illustration 66/5 on a philatelic cover cancelled on Dec 3 2015.

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MIDWAY ISLAND : Dave Trutwin has sent a scan of a cover cancelled by a Dumb Navy machine cancellation with the rubber stamp marking SAILOR'S MAIL - Dave tells me that the cover is from Midway and that that he has never previously seen the SAILOR'S MAIL markingon mail from Midway. See Illustration 76/7 below

Illustration 76/11

*****************************************************************************************Thats all for now on this final printed edition of the Bulletin – keep sending in information to [email protected] and I will continue to produce a web version of the Bulletin whenever I have a page of material available. Best Wishes to you all. ***********************************************************************