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Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps
Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps

Hawaiian Missionaries


Issue Date

October 1, 1851

Issuer

Hawaii

Known For

First stamps of Hawaii

Approximate Value

Unused: 450,000 pounds
Used: 225,000 pounds

History

Mail in Hawaii used to be carried by ships with no official postal system in place. However, by 1851, traffic in Hawaii was high enough that the government set up a postal office and established official postal rates.

These Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps came in the denominations of 2, 5, and 13 cents. They were the first stamps issued in Hawaii and were most often used by missionaries working there at the time.

An envelope containing a 2 cent and 5 cent Hawaiian Missionary stamp (as well as two other 3 cent stamps) survived to this day and is known as the Dawson Cover:

Dawson Cover

This cover sold for $1.9 million in 1995.


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Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps
Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps Hawaiian Missionaries Stamps