Lot
789 
San Diego Cal, June 16 (San Diego), manuscript postmark and "12½ paid" manuscript rate marking on portion of folded letter sheet (no contents) to Governor John McDougal in San Jose, undated but necessarily an 1851 use when McDougal was governor and so likely carried on the SS Oregon departing San Diego June 17 and arriving San Francisco June 19, 1851, a couple short edge tears, Very Fine, ex-Myerson.
Estimate $300 - 400.
Realized: $1,700
Lot
790
San Francisco "July 2", bold black straight line postmark (Williams SAF-230) with magenta manuscript date and matching "40" rating on gray 1849 folded letter to Boston Mass., Extremely Fine, Very Fine. Estimate $1,000 - 1,500.
ONE OF THE FINEST STRIKES OF THE SAN FRANCISCO STRAIGHT LINE POSTMARK, USED ON ONLY 3 SAILING DATES OF JUNE 20, JULY 2 AND AUGUST 1, 1849.
Realized: $1,700
Lot
791
San Francisco Cal., 13 Aug, red cds and black "Ship 6" clamshell due handstamp on gray folded letter datelined "Sydney, 31st March 1851" to San Francisco Cal., endorsed per "Robert Borone" at top, clean and Very Fine, ex-Polland. Estimate $400 - 600.
ONE OF ONLY TWO RECORDED EXAMPLES OF RED SAN FRANCISCO CDS COMBINATION WITH BLACK CLAMSHELL DUE HANDSTAMP.
Written up in Western Express by the late Scott Polland.
Lot
792
San Francisco Covers, small group of four covers comprising 1851 San Francisco red cds and matching superb "40" rating handstamp to Boston; 3¢ Nesbitt entire to Long Bar Cal. with scarce black "Too Late" oval handstamp as no doubt missing steamer up river; 1862 use to France with #65 & #69 cancelled by fancy cogwheels; #147 on 3¢ U84 entire to Hawaii with scarce black "Too Late" oval handstamp, F.-V.F. and interesting group. Estimate $300 - 400.
Realized: $375
Lot
793
San Francisco Cal., 6 Jul, cds with matching Clamshell "Ship 6" due handstamp on pink folded letter from the Gibbs correspondence to San Francisco Cal. datelined "Manila, 3d April 1857" and "Via China p. Steamer", endorsed per "Jos. Peabody", Very Fine. Estimate $200 - 300.
Realized: $120
Lot
794
San Francisco, Cal., Oct 1 (San Francisco), large serifed cds on incoming cover from Hawaii addressed to North Guilford, Connecticut "U.S.A.", purple manuscript "Ship 42" rate marking for the 2¢ ship fee plus 40¢ postage to destination, undated but necessarily an 1849 use given the postmark type, carried from San Francisco on the SS Oregon, few small flaws, F.-V.F. Estimate $200 - 300.
Sent aboard the bark "Mary Frances" departing Honolulu on September 5th and arriving in San Francisco on October 1st, 1849.
Realized: $150
Lot
795
San Francisco, Cal, 1 Oct (San Francisco), large serifed cds in orange red and "29" rate and straightline "Paid" handstamps in matching orange red on cover to Liverpool, England (29¢ west coast rate to England prepaid), "via Panama" sender’s endorsement at right, New York or Boston "19" credit handstamp in bright red, Liverpool "America, Paid, No 18, 51" arrival postmark in dark red, carried from San Francisco on the SS Oregon, corner and edge wear, edge toning, Fine. Estimate $100 - 150.
Lot
796
San Francisco (San Francisco), origin on four folded business letters from the same correspondence sent prepaid via Panama and carried to Valparaiso, Chile by British ships, interestingly none of the letters was both postmarked at origin and fully rated at both origin and destination, first 1854 with San Francisco large cds and only red 24 credit, second 1854 with no origin cds but pencil 96 rate (double rate) and red 48 credit plus pencil 25 centavos collect for local delivery, third 1855 with no origin cds and pencil 48 rate and red 24 credit plus pencil 25 centavos collect for local delivery, fourth 1857 with San Francisco large cds in red and only pencil 34 rate, Very Fine group, with three from the 1853-56 48¢ rate period and one from the 1856-70 34¢ rate period. Estimate $300 - 400.
Realized: $200
Lot
797
San Francisco (San Francisco), destination on cover with "per Golden Gate" sender's endorsement, no postmark but "20" due handstamp for an unpaid double-weight letter arriving by contract ship, docket indicates the cover originated April 27, 1855, in Washington, D.C., and was received May 30, 1855, in San Francisco, small stains mostly around the edges, Very Fine, a most uncommon contract ship letter use. Estimate $7,200 - 300.
This cover was most likely carried on the SS George Law that departed New York City on May 5, 1855, and arrived in Aspinwall on May 16, 1855. The unpaid cover must have been picked up en route in Washington, D.C and transported from there outside of the locked mail bags. The cover was then carried on the SS Golden Gate that departed Panama City on May 16, 1855, and arrived in San Francisco on May 30, 1855.
Lot
798
San Francisco, Cal., 29 Oct (San Francisco), large serifed cds and clamshell "Ship 6" due handstamp on incoming folded letter with United States Consul certification enclosed from Bordeaux, France and originally accompanying a shipment of wine (ten casks of claret), "Confiance" sender’s ship endorsement, letter and docket inside confirm that ship carried both the letter and the wine from Bordeaux to San Francisco, letter prepaid with France 10c and 20c Empire issues tied by lozenge cancels, "Bordeaux, 4 Jun, 55" origin postmark, Very Fine, scarce 30c rate, "Bateau de Commerce". Estimate $200 - 300.
This artifact of wine connoisseurship by California’s pioneers was sent the same year Emperor Napoleon III requested a classification system for France’s best Bordeaux wines. Napoleon believed such a scheme would prove useful at the 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris where Bordeaux wines were to be on display for
visitors from around the world. Wines were ranked in five levels according to a chateau’s reputation and trading price, which in turn reflected the quality of the wines that were produced. The 1855 classification system remains in use today.
Realized: $425