::: AUXILIARY MARKS - Foreign Auxiliary Marks :::
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Back to Auxiliary Marks.
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This cover mailed from the British Colony of Victoria, Australia, on May 9, 1894, bears
a handstamp of the H. J. Mortlock & Co., Melbourne, Australia. The firm dealt in
postage stamps for collectors. The cover is addressed to Walter M. Giffard, a well
known stamp collector in the 1890's, son-in-law of PMG Brickwood and author of a
definitive treatise on Hawaiian stamps.
Foreign Auxiliary marks cover the same categories created for the study of Hawaiian
auxiliary marks: transportation marks,
forwarder marks,
express marks,
official marks and
private sender marks. The common definition of
this group is the mark was placed on the mail outside Hawaii. Most of these marks are
easier to find on incoming rather than outgoing mail.
TRANSPORTATION MARKS
Foreign auxiliary transportation marks are few, so far as my research goes. Added to
the two examples shown here, one might also include the San Francisco packet marks
shown at Ship Marks because they probably were
applied at San Francisco.
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AUXFORGNTR-Isthmus
straightline
unserifed letters
orange
May 15, 1850
Advertiser Sale, lot 2094
Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
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PER STR ISTHMUS
Usage: 1850
The steamer Isthmus belonged to George Law's Pacific Line at this time. Until
October, 1850, the San Francisco post office could dispatch mail for New York by
steamers belonging to any of the several lines operating between San Francisco and
Panama. This marking is believed to have been used by the George Law Line rather than
being applied at the post office and, thus, is an auxiliary mark.
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AUXFORGNTR-Nicaragua
52mm x 30mm double lined oval
unserifed letters
November 24, 1854
Pietsch Sale, lot 1660
Courtesy of Shreves Philatelic Galleries
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VIA NICARAGUA/
IN ADVANCE OF THE MAILS
Usage:
This mark was used by the Opposition Line of steamers operating in competition with
the Pacific Mail. Instead of using the Panama Isthmus Route, this line used a
Nicaragua crossing. It is not a rare mark on mail originating in California, but only
one example is recorded on mail from Hawaii.
The cover bearing this mark arrived in San Francisco on November 17 and left for
New York via Nicaragua on the Opposition Line steamer Uncle Sam on November 24.
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FORWARDER MARKS
San Francisco
Use of forwarders to handle mail from Hawaii was popular until the mid-50's. On mail
bound for Hawaii, forwarders were often used until regular contract steam service was
established in September, 1867. Until then, mail addressed directly to Honolulu was
held at the San Francisco post office until it was picked up by a mail agent appointed
by the Hawaiian Postal Service. Hawaii selected a San Francisco merchant to act as its
mail agent. The agent, with more or less diligence, would retrieve mail for Hawaii
from the San Francisco post office after the arrival of the mail steamer via Panama –
or the overland coach once that service began. Mail for Hawaii was then placed aboard
a vessel selected by the mail agent. To avoid this sometimes uncertain process, a
correspondent seeking a more reliable connection would direct Hawaii bound mail to the
care of a merchant firm in San Francisco. That firm would place the letter in its own
letter bag and select the vessel to carry it. Often the merchant selected by the
sender was the same merchant selected by Hawaii as its mail agent. Whether a fee was
paid for this service is uncertain. Some San Francisco firms encouraged the practice
as a way to raise their visibility in Hawaiian commercial circles so probably any
forwarding was done gratis. When the contract steamers began to run, use of forwarders
declined but did not disappear until sometime in the latter part of the 1880's. At
least I have no examples after 1885. For illustrations of Hawaii forwarder marks, see
Hawaii Forwarder Agent Marks.
Dating inbound covers with foreign forwarding marks depends on luck. Sometimes a
receipt date was scribbled on the cover. Sometimes a foreign country postmark showed a
date. Most of the time, the covers have no postal markings of any kind, no manuscript
notations and no basis other than a good guess for arriving at a date. Vessel names
sometimes were placed on covers and provide a tool to narrow the cover to particular
sailings. For a list of vessel names and handstamps, see
Auxiliary Marks - Ship Marks.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Aldrich
46mm x 25mm single lined oval
serifed letters except town
black
1866
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FORWARDED BY/
SAN FRANCISCO/
ALDRICH, MERRILL & CO
Usage: 1866
Mark noted as a backstamp on an inbound cover sent postage paid through the mail
from Holmes Hole, Mass. on August 6, 1866.
Aldrich eventually came to Honolulu to help found the banking firm Bishop & Co.
J. C. Merrill remained a San Francisco merchant for years. Aldrich, Merrill & Co. was
the San Francisco mail agent designated by Hawaii from 1865 to 1868.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Brooks
38mm x 26mm double lined oval
serifed letters except firm name
black, bluish-green
c. 1862
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FORWARDED/
BY/
CHASW.BROOKS & CO/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1862-1866
Mark noted on face of two stampless inbound covers from San Francisco and handled
outside the mail.
Brooks attempted to ingratiate himself with the Honolulu merchants by taking
Hawaii bound mail from the San Francisco post office ahead of the appointed Hawaiian
mail agent and sending it to Honolulu. PMG Brickwood put a stop to Brooks's efforts.
Brooks loaned heavily on sugar in Hawaii following the Civil War, supporting the Walker,
Allen & Co. firm in Honolulu. After sugar prices plummeted, the Brooks firmed failed
on October 8, 1866.
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AUXFORGNFWD-McRuer(no lines)
51mm x 30mm double lined oval
unserifed letters
black
August 10, 1861
Hall Sale, lot 822, Siegel Auction #830
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FORWARDED BY/
MCRUER & MERRILL/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1861
Noted as a backstamp on two outbound covers sent the same date via Pony Express.
McRuer & Merrill was the San Francisco mail agent designated by Hawaii from
1860 to 1865.
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AUXFORGNFWD-McRuer(lines)
51mm x 31mm single lined oval
unserifed letters; fancy lines above and below the firm name
red
c. May, 1865
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FORWARDED BY/
fancy line/
MCRUER & MERRILL/
fancy line/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1861
Noted on the face of an inbound cover sent from Bangor, Maine on April 11, 1865.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Post(oval)
37mm x 25mm single lined oval
unserifed letters
black
circa 1852
Champion Sale, lot 4, Shreve Philatelic Galleries, June 6, 1997
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FORWARDED BY/
G. B. POST & Co/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1852
The oval G. B. Post mark is rare. It is noted on one outbound cover to
Massachusetts and one inbound cover to Hawaii.
G. B. Post & Co. was the San Francisco mail agent designated by Hawaii from
1850 to 1856. Gabriel Post himself was a prominent figure in San Francisco until his
firm failed in 1856.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Post(CO)
39mm x 24mm single lined octagon
unserifed letters except firm name; letters "CO" in firm name are superscripted,
underscored and followed by a small dash (see detail).
black
circa 1854
detail
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FORWARDED BY/
G. B. POST CO -/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1854
This mark is much scarcer than the usual octagon illustrated below,
AUXFORGNFWD-Post(&CO).
I have seen only one example so far, noted on a stampless outbound cover to
Massachusetts and marked "Per Yankee via San Fr'o."
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AUXFORGNFWD-Post(&CO)
39mm x 24mm single lined octagon
unserifed letters except firm name; the letter "O" of "CO" in the firm name is
superscripted with a dot beneath it
black
December 15, 1854
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FORWARDED BY/
G. B. POST & Co
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1854-1856
This octagon is the G. B. Post mark usually seen. I would give it a Scarcity 2.
It is noted on both incoming and outgoing mail, usually stampless. This mark is seen
on all of the marks bearing stamped ship names of the mid-1850's. See
Ship Marks.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Spreckels
59mm x 35mm double lined oval
unserifed letters except "Forwarded by" and "Commission Merchants"
red
April 1, 1885
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Forwarded by/
J. D. SPRECKELS & BROS./
SHIPPING AND/
COMMISSION MERCHANTS/
327 Market St./
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL.
Usage: 1885
Mark is noted on the back of an inbound cover.
The Spreckels interests in Hawaii ran deep, starting with the father, Claus
Spreckels. His sons were active in shipping, sugar and many other aspects of Hawaiian
commerce from their offices in San Francisco.
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Other
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AUXFORGNFWD-Bush
43mm x 27mm single lined oval
serifed letters
black
c. 1846
Advertiser Sale, lot 2091
Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
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FORWARDED/
by/
Bush & Co/
HONG KONG
Usage: 1846
Hong Kong, China
Noted on mail from Mazatlan, Mexico, to Canton via Honolulu and Hong Kong.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Hale
__mm x __mm single lined oval
serifed letters
red
September 11, 1844
Courtesy of Albert Chang
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FORWARDED/
BY/
HALE & CO./
FROM/
NEW BEDFORD
Usage: 1844
New Bedford, Massachusetts
Noted on outbound mail.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Larkin
43mm x 29mm double lined oval
serifed letters
black
c. June, 1846
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FORWARDED BY/
CALIFORNIA/
THOMAS O. LARKIN MONTEREY
Usage: 1846
Monterey, Alta California, Mexico
Noted on outgoing mail to California and forwarded by Larkin, the U.S. Consul at
Monterey, Alta California.
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AUXFORGNFWD-Maitland
52mm x 16mm double lined octagon
serifed letters
red
c. 1850
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MAITLAND PHELPS & CO./
NEW YORK
Usage: 1850
New York, NY
Noted on mail handled privately from Honolulu to London via New York.
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AUXFORGNFWD-WDPhelps
52mm x 16mm double lined octagon
manuscript
black
February 30th, 1844 (sic.)
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Manuscript
Usage: 1844
Valparaiso, Chile
The date of course is February 29 (1844 was a leap year) or March 1. Noted on mail
from New England to California via Honolulu.
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EXPRESS MARKS
San Francisco
Two San Francisco express companies used handstamps placed outside Hawaii on mail to or
from Hawaii. These two companies are the same two with Honolulu handstamps, Gregory's
Express and Wells, Fargo & Co. For illustrations of the marks used in Hawaii, see
Hawaii Express Company Marks.
Gregory's Express
Gregory's Express used several handstamps at its San Francisco office, but only one is
noted on Hawaiian mail.
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AUXFORGNEXP-Gregory's
unbordered three straight lines
serifed letters except town name
black
April 4, 1852
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GREGORY'S EXPRESS/
OFFICE,/
SAN FRANCISCO
Usage: 1852
Noted on an inbound letter.
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Wells, Fargo & Co.
John F. Leutzinger's "The Handstamps of Wells, Fargo & Co., 1852-1895" is the
authoritative work on these marks.
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AUXFORGNEXP-WellsFargo(circle)
31mm single lined outer and inner circles
unserifed letters
blue
August 10, 1861
Hall Sale, lot 822, Siegel Auction #830
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WELLS, FARGO & COS EXPRESS./
date/
S.FRCO
Leutzinger 1-19 and 11-4
Usage: 1861; Leutzinger says it was "used for
many years as a cancel."
Noted on two outgoing covers sent on the same date via Pony Express.
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AUXFORGNEXP-WellsFargo(pony)
42mm x 29mm single lined oval
serifed letters
blue
August 10, 1861
Hall Sale, lot 822, Siegel Auction #830
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PONY EXPRESS/
running pony/
date/
SAN FRANCISCO
Leutzinger 15-1
Usage: 1861
Noted on two outgoing covers sent on the same date via Pony Express.
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AUXFORGNEXP-WellsFargo(bogus)
__mm x 27mm single lined oval
unserifed letters above, serifed below
blue
February 22, 1884
Advertiser Sale, lot 3438
Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
April 8, 1884
detail
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WELLS, FARGO & CO./
date/
two concave lines/
SAN FRANCISCO
Leutzinger Unlisted
Usage: February 22, 1884 to April 8, 1884
Noted on outgoing mail. This mark, with the slightly superscripted "O" at the end
of "San Francisco" is found only on blue-black franks of the Wells, Fargo & Co.
Leutzinger has no listing for a mark of this style (two lines below, none above;
superscripted "O"). I believe this mark is bogus
and this opinion contributed to concerns regarding the genuine character of the
Hawaiian blue-black Wells Fargo franks. Expert certificates declare the blue black
frank was not applied at the time. Please let me know if you have further information
to shed light on this subject.
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AUXFORGNEXP-WellsFargo(three lines)
38mm x 28mm double lined oval
unserifed letters above, serifed below
blue, purple
March 1, 1884
Advertiser Sale, lot 3439
Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
March 16, 1885
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WELLS, FARGO & CO./
three convex lines/
date/
three concave lines
SAN FRANCISCO.
Leutzinger 17-12
Usage: March 1, 1884 to February 6, 1887
Noted on incoming and outgoing covers. Some of the images I have are quite weak so
it is possible one or more of the strikes I place in this type could be another type.
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Other
Only one express company mark applied outside of Hawaii or San Francisco has been noted
so far.
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AUXFORGNEXP-Harnden
37mm single lined circle
black
c. late 1848
Advertiser Sale, lot 2125
Courtesy of Siegel Auction Galleries
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HARNDEN & CO/
of Liverpool/
Have Paid Postage/
TO LIVERPOOL........./
TRANSATLANTIC......../
TO BE COLLECTED......../
by/
HARNDEN & CO OF U. S.
Usage: 1848
Noted on mail from Honolulu to Boston via China and Liverpool.
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OFFICIAL MARKS
Finding foreign auxiliary official marks placed on Hawaiian mail somewhere other than
in Hawaii has proven difficult. Marks placed on mail in Hawaii by foreign consulates
located in Hawaii are shown in the page under Official Auxiliary Marks. For this page,
we are looking for marks placed outside of Hawaii on letters to or from Hawaii. For
official marks placed on mail in Hawaii, see
Official Auxiliary Marks.
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AUXFORGNOFF-Brittanic
63mm x 5mm straightline
St. Thomas, West Indies
black letterpress
March 15, 1863
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PRIVATE SENDER MARKS
Incoming mail shows a good variety of private sender marks from all over the world.
Here are some illustrations. I still need a good example of a sender mark from Asia.
For private sender marks applied in Hawaii, see
Private Sender Marks.
Africa
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AUXFORGNPRI-Isaac
unbordered mark in four lines
Constantine, Algeria
purple
c. March, 1900
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Australia
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AUXFORGNPRI-WAB
28mm x 19mm single lined outer and inner ovals
Western Australia
blue
May 16, 1899
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AUXFORGNPRI-Mortlock
48mm x 30mm double outer lined and single inner ovals
Melbourne, Australia
purple
May 9, 1894
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Europe
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AUXFORGNPRI-Koecher
27mm x 14mm single lined outer and inner ovals
Manchester, England
black, blue green
July 5, 1871
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North America
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AUXFORGNPRI-Brooks
25mm single lined outer and inner circles
San Francisco
red
July 16, 1864
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AUXFORGNPRI-Hawley
22mm single lined outer and inner circles
San Francisco
black
October 20, 1868
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AUXFORGNPRI-Dimond
49mm x 25mm single lined outer and inner ovals
San Francisco
black
December 24, 1891
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Pacific Islands
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AUXFORGNPRI-Langhorn
unbordered, two lines
Apia, Samoa
purple
March 13, 1883
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AUXFORGNPRI-Ponape
unbordered, two lines
Ponape, Micronesia
blue
c. May, 1886
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South America
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AUXFORGNPRI-Schroeder
35mm x 11mm double lined octagon
Buenos Ayres, Argentina
blue
February 1, 1856
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