“Almost coincident with the issuance by the United States Post Office Department of postage stamps for use on letters and parcels sent through the US mails, in 1847, the Government of the Kingdom of Hawaii, in the reign of Kamehameha III, had under consideration the establishment of an interisland mail service, with a post office department in charge of mails.”
“Up to the actual establishment of the Hawaiian Post Office, which was accomplished through a decree of the Privy Council, December 22, 1850, with Henry M. Whitney as Postmaster, mails arriving at Honolulu from the American States, largely from Atlantic seaboard ports, and of course, coming on sailing vessels, were distributed helter-skelter.”
“Charles R. Bishop, when Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1873, when asked for reminiscences concerning the early handling of mails, wrote on May 23, 1873:”
“‘Your letter of March 6 was duly received and in accordance with your request, which I passed over to Em. Fenard, Esq., first clerk in the post office, he has been kind enough to prepare an historical sketch of, and to copy out the laws relating to the Hawaiian postal system, to which he has attached all the postage stamps now in use here, and all the old ones which are procurable.’”
“‘In 1846-7, when a merchant ship from Boston or New York arrived via Cape Horn, the mail matter was usually poured out from the bags, etc., onto the floor of the counting room of the consignees of the vessel, or of the harbormaster’s office …’”
“‘… and those expecting letters gathered around the pile to assist in overhauling or ‘sorting’, picking out their own, and passing over their shoulders the letters, etc., of those standing in the outer circle.’”
“‘Letters for captains and crew of ships on cruise, addressed to care of ship chandlers, went to their offices; the seamen’s chaplain took those sent in his care, and the remainder for sailors went into the old tea-chest at the Consulate.’”
“‘When the whalers came into port to recruit, their crews made the rounds of the ship chandlers, the Chaplaincy, and the Consulate, in search of news from home, and the old tea-chest was upset and overhauled many times daily while the fleet was in port.’”
“‘Soon after steam communication was established between New York and San Francisco, via Panama, postal regulations were put in force here, which have from time to time been improved, until we now have a well-conducted and convenient post office.’”
“Singularly enough, the efforts of the United States Post Office Department to establish, through contracts, regular mail service between New York and San Francisco by way of Panama, were closely tied up with the system soon to be established in Hawaii.”
“The United States planned to use about $200,000 a year to establish the New York-San Francisco-Oregon mail service. The story is well known.”
“Contracts were let to sub-contractors, among the latter being a Mr. Aspinwall, who had the contract between Panama and San Francisco and Oregon. The overland mail-carrying service on Panama was a separate contract. The attempts to use Nicaragua and Mexico for mail service failed.”
“The steamer California was the first to be put into the service. She was especially built, and sailed from New York for San Francisco, via Cape Horn. Meantime, the news of the gold discovery reached the Eastern states, and a wild rush was made for California, via the American desert and via Panama.”
“When the California called at the Pacific side of Panama, a wild mob of prospective passengers, also mail, awaited her. The ship was crowded, many paying a thousand dollars for a ticket. At San Francisco every member of the crew, except the engineer, deserted to go to the mines.”
“When the next steamer entered San Francisco, she was anchored in the shadow of the guns of a warship and forcible measures were taken to prevent desertions, and. the pay of the crew was raised from $12 to $112.”
“But, while steam was used to convey letters from the eastern states to California and Oregon, sailing vessels were relied upon to carry mails from San Francisco to Honolulu.”
“Likewise mails originated in Atlantic seaboard ports for Honolulu direct. Oftentimes, sailing vessels with mail and passengers, as well as cargo, bound for San Francisco or Oregon, put into Honolulu for refreshments, leaving mail, and also taking mail.”
“It may not be generally known, but the first American troops for Oregon, first saw the Hawaiian Islands, as the steamer Massachusetts, a transport, called at Honolulu and the troops rested before proceeding north.”
“Prior to the use of postage stamps by the United States and by Hawaii, letters were usually handled in this manner: ‘The letter was written on one side of the paper.’”
“‘This was folded from bottom half way to the top, and the top was folded down toward the middle. Then the ends were folded over, say about one-third, so that one end overlapped the other, and sealing wax was then dropped on the junctions and a signet ring made the seal impression.’”
“‘On the opposite side, the address was written, and usually in a corner was added “via Ship Amazon.” This letter was handed in at the office of the ship company in New York, or Boston, or San Francisco, together with the amount of postage required, sometimes for a voyage beyond a certain number of miles amounting to 25 or 40 cents.’ …”
“In the 4th article of the Second Act, April 27, 1846, entitled ‘An Act to Organize the Executive Departments of the Hawaiian Islands,’ is the first mention ever made of the Post Office …”
“… and the regulations adopted in relation to the inter-island mails read that the Collector-General of Customs, and the Collectors of the respective ports of entry, shall be ex-officio, postmasters, and entitled to receive, and open, at their respective ports, the mail bags hereinafter specified.”
“‘The Minister of the Interior shall appoint some trustworthy and discreet person, residing conveniently on each of the islands, where no port of entry and departure is established, to be the postmaster thereof.’”
“The minister was to furnish each postmaster with leathern bags, capable of being securely locked. Then there were instructions about closing mails an hour previous to departures of vessels …”
“… and he was compelled to list each letter and package and retain it, that is, a copy, enclosing in each bag a copy of the list. Then the receiving postmaster was to post the list in a conspicuous place, where the public could view it.”
“When the commander of a foreign ship arrived at a port, he took whatever mail he had to the post office and was entitled to receive from the postmaster for each letter, two cents, and for each newspaper delivered, one cent.”
“Gradually, out of this primitive sort of post office, grew the Hawaiian Post Office, which had its treaty relations, in postal conferences and conventions, with other nations, and the system was made as good as possible. …”
“The above was altered by the postal convention in force between the United States and the Hawaiian Kingdom, of the 4th of May, 1870. Two cents was required as postage on each newspaper; pamphlets were 4 cents.”
“In 1865 an amendment was made that no letters should be carried or delivered without postage having been previously affixed, and individuals were prohibited from carrying such unstamped letters for delivery.”
“Ship captains, also, could place a box, properly lettered with the name of his ship and his own name, in which box letters, properly stamped, could be dropped, the captain acting as sub-route-agent.”
“The post office was required to pay all its own expenses. Apparently, a deficit was not permissible. But, if a deficiency did arise, then the Postmaster-General could draw upon the Treasury for the amount.”
“The safe transmission of mails between the Hawaiian Government and the United States of America, previous to the Postal Convention between these two countries, and approved by the President on the 5th day of May, 1870, was provided for in Article 15 of the American Treaty, ratified on the 9th of August, 1850.”
“The first postmaster appointed in Honolulu was H. M. Whitney, who retained that situation from 1850 to 1856, when he established the Pacific Commercial Advertiser, which is now styled the Honolulu Advertiser.”
“During the time of his incumbency, stamps were issued of the denominations of 5 and 13 cents for foreign letters, and 2 cents for papers, all of which were mere digits, and by 1876, could not be found, except in rare instances.”
“Under the administration of Postmaster Jackson, from 1856 to 1859, a large number of stamps of varied denominations were issued, and during his term inter-island postage originated, of 2 cents per 1/2 ounce on letters, and 1 cent on papers.” (JF Woolley, Postmaster; Thrum 1930)
During the fifty years of Hawaii’s independent postal system from 1850 to 1900, the post office occupied three premises: a room in The Polynesian Office (1850-1854;) rooms in Honolulu Hale, situated next door to The Polynesian Office (1854-1871;) and about half of the ground floor in the “New Post Office” (Kamehameha V Post Office, 1871-1922,) situated on the former site of The Polynesian Office.
On June 14, 1900, the Kamehameha V Post Office officially became a unit of the United States Post Office (the year that Hawaii became a Territory of the US.)
