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--

June 26th 2001 - 75th Anniversary of the launching of the "S.S. Malolo".

Two stamps were issued on June 26th 2001 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the launching of the luxury passenger ship "S.S. Malolo", pride of the Matson Line.

William Matson was born in Lysekil, Sweden, in 1849. Matson took to the sea early, getting his first job on board a ship at the age of 10. By 21, Matson was the Captain of a schooner running between San Francisco, California and the Puget Sound area. In 1882 he bought his own ship, the "Emma Claudina", a three-masted schooner. That ship's first voyage (carrying 300 tons of food, plantation supplies and general merchandise) and a few passengers from San Francisco to Hilo, Hawai'i took 18-days and marked the beginning of the Matson Navigation Company. Several other ships followed in the fleet, including the "S.S. Malolo".

The Malolo, which is Hawaiian for "flying fish", was designed by William Francis Gibbs who was to become one of the world's leading naval architects and marine engineers. He is credited with the design and construction of over 6,000 vessels. The Malolo was built by W. Cramp & Sons in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.and launched there on June 26 1926. It was christened by Wilhelmina Tenney, daughter of E.B.Tenney, the Manager of the Matson Line.

Following the Titanic disaster, a meeting was held in London, England to improve the safety and construction of all future passenger ships. The Malolo was built to these new specifications, and it was just as well because on its sea trials, in a fog off Nantucket, she was accidentally rammed by the Norwegian steamer "Jacob Christensen" creating a 15 foot gash in the port side of the ship. The Malolo was so badly damaged that she had to be towed to New York, taking on 7,000 tons of water, but she stayed upright and did not sink. This delayed her completion by five months.

The "S.S. Malolo" finally made her maiden voyage on Matson's regular San Francisco and Los Angeles to Honolulu passenger service on November 16 1927. The Malolo was the fastest ship in the Pacific, cruising at 22 knots. In 1937 she was refitted and renamed the "S.S. Matsonia". In 1942 the Matsonia was converted into a Navy transport for the remainder of WWII. Her success led to the construction of the Matson liners the "S.S. Mariposa" and the "S.S. Monterey" in 1931 and the "S.S. Lurline" in 1932.

In 1976 Matson ended its passenger service and sold all remaining passenger ships. Matson continues to-day as a freight only service with a large fleet of container ships which ply between the West Coast and Hawai'i.

The $5 stamp (above left) prepays the Overnight rate. It shows the "S.S. Malolo" docked at Honolulu Harbor.

The $8 stamp (above right) prepays the Same Day rate. It shows the"S.S. Malolo" at sea near Hawai'i.

Note the two different colors of the ship's hulls depicted on each stamp. Matson did not paint it's ships all white (except for the funnels) until about 1929.

A Booklet consisting of 2 panes containing 2 x $5 and 2 x $8 stamps was also issued. Each pane consists of 2 stamps and has a white margin all around. "© 2001 Hawai'i Post" is printed vertically on the lower right side margin & Hawai'i Security Printers, Honolulu, Hawai'i. is printed on the bottom margin of each pane.

The booklet cover is of blue card stock and is stapled twice at the left side.

Click here to order stamps.

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Technical details of the stamps:
Colors: $5 and $8 stamps - Multicolored
Size: 32mm x 48mm.
Stamps sheet size: $5 - 30 (6 across, 5 down). $8 - 30 (5 across, 6 down)
Perforation: 12.
Stamps design: Enelani.
Layout & Pre-press: Enelani.
Printer: Hawai'i Security Printers, Honolulu, Hawai'i.
Printing Method: 4-color (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black) printing process.
Sheet margin markings: HAWAI'I POST (top middle), "Traffic Light" showing 4 colors used in printing (lower left side), © 2001 Hawai'i Post (lower right side) & Hawai'i Security Printers, Honolulu, Hawai'i. (bottom middle)
Paper: GPA coated white stock with water-activated gum on the back.


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