Pacific Islanders hail from some of the farthest reaches of the world, including the islands of Hawaii, the Marshall Islands, American Samoa, Micronesia, and Palau, as well as countries on the Pacific Rim such as China and Japan. Beginning with the Pacific Islands and ending with the nations on the Pacific Rim, this Guide highlights the political and cultural relationship between these nations and the United States through the medium of postage stamps.

The U.S. has a long history of relations in the Pacific region. Initially valued for their strategic locations, many of the Pacific Islands have been or currently are U.S. territories. Stamps issued in honor of this region symbolize goodwill. After WWII, the United Nations assigned several Pacific island groups to a Trust Territory administered by the U.S. The islands included Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands and Palau. Over time many of them became self-governing.

In 1986, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Marshall Islands negotiated with the U.S. to create the Compact of Free Association. This enables the islands to self-govern while the U.S. provides defense as well as other services, such as economic aid. In 1990, the U.S., FSM, and the Marshall islands jointly issued stamps commemorating the Compact. These stamps illustrate aspects of the nations’ heritage that make them unique, such as traditional canoes and navigational stick charts.

Palau is a group of 200 islands in the Western Pacific with a total land area of 188 square miles spread over 400 miles of ocean. In 1994, Palau voted to join the Compact of Free Association, and similar to the FSM and Marshall Islands, the United States and Palau’s postal systems worked together to issue joint stamps in celebration of Palau’s first year of independence. This stamp illustrates Palau’s rich marine life that draws many tourists and explorers to its island every year.

Now a commonwealth territory of the United States, the Northern Mariana Islands are protected by the U.S., and its inhabitants hold U.S. citizenship. As such, the United States Postal Service issued a stamp in 1993 in tribute to the commonwealth’s fourteen islands. This stamp depicts latte stones, a common feature found on the Islands. The ancient stones were created by the indigenous Chamorro people as building supports.

The islands of American Samoa were discovered in 1722 by Dutch navigator Jacob Roggeveen. In 1900, local Samoan chiefs ceded the islands of Tutuila and Aunuu to the U.S. This stamp commemorating a century of political affiliation between the U.S. and Samoa featues an alia, the traditional double canoe, sailing with the prevailing easterly wind. Sunuitao Peak, on the island of Ofu, can be seen in the background. American Samoa’s 6 islands officially became a U.S. territory in 1929.

Guam is located in the north Pacific. From the 16th to 19th c., Guam was as an important Spanish port, serving as a mid-point between the Philippines and Mexico. As a result of the Spanish-American war, Spain ceded Guam to the U.S. on December 10, 1898. It was later used by the U.S. Navy as a supply depot, coaling station, and aviation base. Guam boasts approximately 250 coral species and 6,000 marine species, including the black-spotted puffer, threadfin butterfly fish, and staghorn coral.

The relationship between Hawaii and the western world began with the arrival of Captain James Cook in the late 18th c. This 13¢ stamp depicts Cook’s ships Discovery and Resolution in Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii - the location of Cook’s arrival to the island. This stamp was issued in 1978, approximately 200 years after Cook’s arrival in Hawaii.

Although Captain Cook initiated the first contact between Europeans and native Hawaiians, the settlement of western peoples on the islands did not begin until 1820, when the first Christian missionaries began to arrive in Hawaii. In 1850, Henry M. Whitney, Esq., a well-known merchant and printer in Honolulu, became the first Postmaster of the Kingdom of Hawaii, overseeing all mail to and from San Francisco, California. In November, 1850, the first bag of mail left Honolulu for the United States.

When the missionaries first arrived in Hawaii, it was ruled by King Kamehameha III (1814-1854). King of the Hawaiian Islands for thirty years, Kamehameha III was the longest reigning monarch. Influenced by the Christian missionaries, Kamehameha III became the first Christian king of Hawaii. In 1853, the “missionary” stamps were replaced by a new series depicting Kamehameha III. The dieproof shown here was created for the 1889 reprinting of the 13¢ Kamehameha III issue.

In 1937, the first U.S. postage stamp featuring a Hawaiian was released in celebration of Hawaii’s status as a U.S. territory, starting in 1900. The stamp depicts a statue of King Kamehameha I, known as Kamehameha the Great. He is credited with preserving Hawaii’s independence by building alliances with Pacific colonial powers and bringing the Hawaiian Islands under a single sovereignty. King Kamehameha I established a dynasty that ruled the Hawaiian Islands from approximately 1810 until 1872.

Hawaii was a U.S. territory for sixty years, becoming a state on August 21, 1959. Issued on the same day, the 7¢ commemorative airmail stamp depicts a Hawaiian warrior presenting a lei of welcome to the star of statehood with a map of the new state’s islands in the background. Known as the “Aloha State,” Hawaii attracts over four million tourists annually. The 37¢ stamp depicts Waikiki Beach with the extinct volcano Diamond Head in the background and a yellow hibiscus, the state flower.

In 1994, the U.S.and China released the first joint issue stamp intended to recognize friendship between the two nations. The stamps feature the black-necked crane, a native bird of China, and the whooping crane, a native bird of North America. Native and rare to each country, conservation efforts had been established to save these endangered birds. The Chinese consider the crane to be a symbol of peace and friendship; thus, the use of cranes as the subject held significant symbolic value.

In 1853, Commodore Matthew Perry traveled to Japan on behalf of the U.S., seeking to re-establish trade for the first time in over 200 years. Perry succeeded in negotiating with Japan, and the Kanagawa Treaty was established, opening Japan's ports to American ships. This 1953 stamp celebrates the 100th anniversary of Perry’s voyage to Japan, portraying Perry’s arrival in Tokyo Bay with Mt. Fuji in the background.

While the Kanagawa Treaty granted safe harbor to American ships in Japan it did not provide for commercial trade. In 1858 the Harris Treaty was signed, opening Japan’s ports for commercial trade with the U.S. This 4¢ US-Japan Treaty stamp was issued in 1960, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the treaty. The stamp, depicting the cherry blossoms in Washington, DC, was meant to recognize the goodwill and mutual understanding between the U.S. and Japan.

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