Australia Port Darwin to Harrison USA Censored Business Cover 1941 WWII

Item Specifics

Country

Australia

Condition

Cover (Postal History)

Stamp Format

Single

Item Description

Grade: Ungraded
Postal History Item: Cover Origin and Destination: From: S.G. Anderson, Hotel Victoria, Port Darwin - AUS. - (Handwritten on reverse). To: Department 34, Admiracion Laboratories, HARRISON, New Jersey, U.S.A. Stamp: Australia, 3d (three pence) blue, King George VI definitive. Postmark: Dispatch Postmark: Circular Date Stamp (CDS), Location: Likely DARWIN, N.T. (Northern Territory), Date: MAY 27, 1941 (27 MY 41 visible). Censor Markings: Australian Censor Label (Front & Back): Red on white label "OPENED BY CENSOR". Australian Censor Handstamp (Front): "PASSED BY CENSOR" Travel Details: From: Port Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. To: Harrison, New Jersey, USA. Dispatch Date: May 27, 1941. Mode of Transport: Likely sea mail, possibly with some internal air transit within Australia to connect to international shipping routes. The 3d rate was the standard surface letter rate to the USA. Approximate Travel Distance (Darwin to Harrison, NJ via sea routes): This would be a very long journey, likely transiting through southern Australian ports, approx. 18,000-20,000 km (11,000-12,500 miles). Historical Context for Postmark Date (May 27, 1941): World War II: The war was escalating. The Battle of Crete had just concluded (May 20 – June 1). The German battleship Bismarck was sunk on this very day, May 27, 1941. Germany was also in the final preparations for Operation Barbarossa (invasion of the Soviet Union, June 1941). Australia's Involvement: Australia was deeply involved in the war. Port Darwin, Northern Territory: Darwin was a strategically important port and military base in northern Australia, becoming increasingly vital as tensions with Japan grew. It would later be heavily bombed by the Japanese in February 1942. Mail from Darwin was less common than from major southern cities. United States Neutrality (Pre-Pearl Harbor): The United States was still officially neutral, but President Roosevelt had declared an "unlimited national emergency" on this same day, May 27, 1941, signaling increased U.S. commitment to supporting the Allies. Censorship: All international mail from Australia was subject to strict censorship. Admiracion Laboratories: Likely a company involved in chemical or pharmaceutical products, given the addressee of other covers in this series (National Oil Products Co.). This cover is a significant example of mail from Port Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, to the USA during World War II, sent on a day of notable wartime events and just before the major escalation of the Pacific War. It features clear Australian censorship markings.

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