-
Continue reading →: When Envelopes Went to War: Rage, Pride, and Satire on the Civil War Home Front
During the royal era of Hawaii, while the American mainland was engulfed in the Civil War, countless patriotic covers were issued and became a cultural phenomenon of the time. Let us momentarily set aside Hawaii and embark on a journey into the world of patriotic covers. A Donkey in a…
-
Continue reading →: A Rare Hawaiian Cancel, or just a tie fighter?
Hello fellow collectors! 👋 I recently inherited this stamp from a late family member who was an APS (American Philatelic Society) member. Based on the description card, it appears to be a Hawaii 2-cent stamp (Scott No. 31a) with what is labeled as a “Meyer-Harris Unlisted” cancel — specifically a…
-
Continue reading →: When Hawaii was a Kingdom, A Rare 1880’s Postal Card and the Elite Debate Club Behind it
At first glance, this small red postal card appears entirely harmless. It is simply a meeting notice for Honolulu’s “Punchbowl Club,” listing a date, an hour, a debate topic, and several names written in a hurried hand. Nothing here screams revolution; nothing suggests the end of a kingdom. Yet, in…
-
Continue reading →: 1898, The Last Letters of The Hawaiian Kingdom
It begins with a small postal cover sent from New York, addressed to Mrs. Hiram. At first glance, it is only an old envelope.But the more I look at it, the more it seemed to open into something much larger. Too much history was fold into this fragile piece of paper.…
-
Continue reading →: Honolulu 1897: a Cover from Hawaii’s Last Independent Postal Years
A Memory before Annexation This cover belongs to a very brief and fragile moment in Hawaiian postal history. In 1897, Hawaii was neither a kingdom nor an American territory. It was the Republic of Hawaii – a short political interval between overthrow and annexation. It was mailed in 1897, just…
-
Continue reading →: Bogus Provisional Government Overprints on Stamped Envelopes
At first glance, the overprint almost looks convincing. But the previous collector knew where to look. He noticed that forged overprint was too large compared with the genuine one. The lettering did not sit naturally on the envelope. And the wording itself didn’t match the authentic provisional government overprint.…
-
Continue reading →: The 100-Year-Old Hawaiian Postal Cover : Hunting for Poet Ella Wheeler’s Hidden Legacy
The sender of this 1908 Royal Hotel cover appears to be the American poet Ella Wheeler Wilcox, whose famous line- ” Laugh, and the world laughs with you” – became one of the most widely quoted verses of the early 20th Century. The recipient was Luther Burbank the celebrated botanist…
-
Continue reading →: Vintage Mail from Old Hawaii: A Curated Archive of Kingdom and Territorial Postal History
Hawaii, Postcards & Airmail from the Kingdom of the Hawaii Welcome to Hawaii Postal History. This site is a curated archive and running commentary on a collection of more than 180 items — covers, postcards, and airmail pieces — spanning the 1800s through the early twentieth century. Each envelope, each…
-
Continue reading →: 1899, This Postcard Travel Around The Otherside of the World
From Honolulu to Brussels in 1899, tracing the long voyage of a handwritten message. Although the French handwriting is hard to read, it appears to say something like this: Dear old Jacques I am sending you this card by way of Japan so that it may travel around the other…
-
Continue reading →: 1903, Library of Congress Postcard: How Early Bibliographers Collected Data
Before email, databases, and instant research, knowledge moved slowly – by envelope, ink, rail and steamship. This 1903 postal card was sent from Boston to the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. At first glance, it looks ordinary a one cent stamp, a few postal markings and hurried handwriting. But…
Hello,
I’m Robin
Welcome to Letters from Hawaii!!!! Some mail never truly arrives -it just waits to be discovered.
Vintage Hawaiian Covers, postal cards , stamps , postmatks, and the forgotten stories of the people who sent and received them . A slow journey through paper, ink, and a little mystery!
Let’s connect
Join the fun!
Stay updated with our latest tutorials and ideas by joining our newsletter.