January 2019

Two covers with differing cachets used on the carrier USS Philppine Sea.
As each group was occupied at different times in the ice, I will discuss each
ship’s activity and philately within that context. One of the hardest tasks to complete
for any Operation Highjump collector is to find covers cancelled while the
ship was in the ice. I give the approximate dates the ship is known to have been in
the ice. However, a few days on either side would place it in the Southern Ocean —
or in a few cases, on the beach in Rio.
West Group
This group consisted of the seaplane tender USS Currituck, the destroyer USS
Henderson and the tanker USS Cacapon. It was responsible for the recording of
perhaps the largest unknown area in the world. Among its discoveries were the
coasts of Wilkes Land, Bunger’s Oasis, and many of the mountains of Queen Maud
Land.
USS Cacapon reached the ice on December 24, and did not leave it until March
3. The vessel used the standard expedition cachet. It had two cancels on mail — a
single ring and double ring types with the ship’s name.
JANUARY 2019 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 31