Lot
1889 
Hawaii, Midway Island - The Tinker Correspondence 1907-16. A fabulous lot of 26 real photo postcards from Midway Island from Rupert Tinker, a Marine stationed at Midway, all but four used & franked with 1¢ Washington-Franklin and cancelled by the very rare "Midway Island, H. Isls./Oahu" duplex cancel, the cards show many excellent views including 13 different shots of Island bird(s), one of Marines Hand Pulling Wagon, one garden scene, five views of Cable Station, one of sender in Military Whites in the "Billiard Room, Cable Station", one of "our two cows", a "Bird's Eye View of the Northwest Section, taken from the top of the Windmill", etc., also included are tw real photo cards from Honolulu to sender, one of which is a view of Surfers, the postmarks vary in strength of strike and completeness as is often the case, overall condition of the cards is excellent with some minor corner wear or tiny worm hole, Very Fine, a wonderful lot worth careful inspection. Estimate $5,000 - 7,500.
In 1903, workers for the Commercial Pacific Cable Company took up residence on the Midway Island as part of the effort to lay a trans-Pacific telegraph cable. The cable, laid in portions from San Francisco to Honolulu to Midway to Guam to the Philippines, carried the first round-the-world message from President Theodore Roosevelt on July 4, 1903. He wished "a happy Independence Day to the U.S., its territories and properties…" After only a brief time at Midway, the Cable Station personnel realized that Japanese poachers landed on the atoll frequently to fish and collect bird feathers and eggs. President Teddy Roosevelt sent 21 Marines to stop the wanton destruction of birdlife, and to keep Midway safe as a U.S. possession.
During the construction of the trans-Pacific telegraph cable, a branch of the Honolulu Postal System operated on the Island, commencing in 1906, which produced some of the rarest postmarks of the Territorial Period.
Realized: $6,250