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Kokua Line
June Watanabe
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Kamehameha stamp could be valuable
Question:
We have a 1937 Kamehameha I stamp, postmarked "Honolulu, Oct. 18 9-AM 1937 Hawaii, First Day of Issue." It is on an envelope addressed to my mother, but it was never actually sent through the mail. We believe her brother purchased it and brought it home to her in Lowell, Ohio. Is this stamp marketable?
Answer: The stamp depicting the statue of King Kamehameha, the first U.S. stamp to honor a native Hawaiian, is marketable.
But its value depends on "condition, condition, condition," the envelope it's on, as well as what kind of pictorial representation of the event -- the "cachet" -- is depicted on the left side of the envelope, according to Kay Hoke, treasurer of the Hawaii Philatelic Society.
The cancellation on the stamp also has to specify "First Day of Issue Honolulu Oct. 18, 1937," he said.
You can get more information, including prices and average values, about postage stamps issued worldwide in the Scott Catalogue, published by Scott Publishing Co. in Ohio, and available in libraries, he said.
Another resource is Mellones, which specializes in first-day covers (envelopes with postage stamps canceled on the first day of issue), Hoke said.
A first-day cover for the Kamehameha I stamp can sell from $5 to $100-plus, depending on what the cachet is, the condition of the cover, etc., he said.
There are at least 200 different cachets for the stamp.
"There are some very rare cachets and there are some very common cachets," Hoke said. The rarer the cachet, the more valuable the stamp.
Beyond that, the 3-cent stamp "off the envelope" isn't worth that much. We saw it offered on the Internet for 10 cents to 79 cents.
An eBay listing for a sheet of 50 unused Kamehameha I stamps said it sold for $9.19.
Another eBay listing for a first-day cover went for $9.99. The envelope was addressed to "Hon. John H. Wilson, Postmaster Honolulu Post Office, Honolulu, T.H." and sent by the "Hawaii Jubilee Commission, Iolani Palace, Honolulu Hawaii." Wilson is presumably the former mayor of Honolulu.
Mahalo
To Interstate Battery Systems, for picking up discarded car batteries that irresponsible people leave on the curb or discard any old place. When you buy a new battery, you should turn the old battery in at the automotive store. Interstate Battery Systems' number is 676-6000. -- Nancy
Interstate Battery Systems of Hawaii is willing to pick up discarded batteries, but General Manager Dave Barbour asks that there be a minimum of 12 for pickup.
Usually that involves some kind of community service project or individual effort.
Interstate Battery Systems is "the nation's No. 1 battery replacement company," Barbour said, as well as the state's largest recycler of batteries, handling the recycling for the state and city governments, the military and several large retailers.
Got a question or complaint? Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered. E-mail to
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