The Military Postal History of the New Hebrides
During the Second World War

Santo - The US Navy


The first Naval personnel, the 6th Navy Construction Battalion arrived on Santo on 11 August 1942. It travelled in company with CUB One (the main construction force for Santo) as part of the advance echelon of LION One, on USS Wharton and shared the transient code-name address of Navy UUB. The only way to distinguish whether a Navy UUB cover is from a member of the 6th NCB or CUB One is to identify to which unit the sender belonged. Covers bearing "Navy UUB" as a return address are extremely rare and can be expected to bear a postage date of 11 or 12 August 1942. Such mail was written either on board USS Wharton and held for postage on reaching Santo or were written immediately on arrival.

Detachment A of "Task Force 6814" had transferred to Santo from Efate on 28 May 1942. On arrival, it had changed its name to Provisional Base Command, BASE BUTTON and established a Post Office under that name, which was used by both army and navy personnel. In fact, the preponderance of personnel in CUB One were naval and covers with Base Button as a return address are more likely to be 'navy' than 'army' in nature. The Base Button designation can be found on Navy correspondence in the period prior to the opening of Navy 140 on 30 January 1943.

In 1943, BUTTON was replaced as a code-name for Santo by the code-name EBON. EBON was not intended to be used as a mailing address because Navy 140 was by then well established as the Fleet Post Office. Regulations were made to be flouted, of course, and Ebon can (rarely) be found as an address.

Echelon 1of Lion One, the main construction force for Santo, did not arrive until 10 February 1943, because of delays in getting equipment. Echelon 2 arrived on 19 March 1943. Three further echelons arrived over the next three months. Together, they comprised a mix of navy and army units, assembled to construct a complete military base. Of relevance to the Navy, Lion One included a number of Naval Construction Battalions. Lion One arrived with its own naval post office (Navy 212) but all other Navy Post Office numbers were consolidated into Navy 140 in early 1943 and the use of Navy 212 is rare as a return address. Indeed, the return address of Lion One seems to have been more frequently used.

One of the rarest mailing addresses to emanate from Santo is Navy UUW. The 14th Navy Construction Battalion was assigned this as a transit address while en route to the New Hebrides. It arrived on Santo on 2 November 1942 but was moved on to Guadalcanal on 7 November, only 5 days later. Covers bearing the Navy UUW address can be expected to be cancelled on or about 2 November 1942 and would have either been written on board ship or immediately on arrival. The two covers illustrated below are the only known examples.

The various Navy Construction Battalions were briefly accorded a series of "8000" numbers in late 1942/early 1943 to use as overseas mailing addresses. The idea was short-lived, but Santo mail can be found from Navy 8085 (the 15th NCB), Navy 8210 (the 40th NCB) and Navy 8235 (the 44th NCB). Such mail is rare.



Navy UUB - The 6th Construction Battalion

12 August 1942 - Navy UUB was a transient code-name only and is thus rare. Indeed, any mail from the 6th NCB
is rare because it remained on Santo for only 64 days before shipping out to Guadalcanal.
This cover was posted by Lt Cmdr (later Rear Admiral) J P Blundon UNS Reserve,
commanding officer of the 6th NCB, on the day the unit reached Santo.



Base BUTTON

10 February 1943
A late use of the Base BUTTONaddress.


13 February 1943 - One of the last known uses of the Base BUTTON address. This cover to Karl Struss,
the famous Hollywood cinematographer. The stamp adheres to a piece of paper
which was then glued to the envelope, possibly indicating that stamp
supplies were short in this early period.



Base EBON

31 July 1943 - The use of the code -name EBON, the replacement name for BUTTON, was against Naval
Postal Regulations, but this inwards letter from Camp Smith, Honolulu slipped through.

This is the only recorded inwards cover using EBON as an address



Navy UUW - the 14th Navy Construction Battalion

2 November 1942 - This cover, bearing the transit code-name "Navy UUW" was
posted on the day the 14th NCB arrived on Santo.

These are the only two recorded covers bearing Navy UUW as the return address.


Undated - In contrast to the above cover, this one bears the primitive,
undated rubber cancel of CUB One (Jersey Type 22).



Navy 212 - Lion One

30 March 1943 - The first echelon of Lion One included the 40th NCB. By the
date of this letter, Lion One's own post office, Navy 212, had been
incorporated into Navy 140.


25 March 1943 - V-mail from the New Hebrides is uncommon. This early example
gives "1st Echelon, Lion One" as the return address.



Navy 1220 - ACORN (Red) Two

23 November 1942 - Navy 1220 was the Post Office assigned to ACORN (Red) 2 on 2 September 1942 as a
special mailing number. This cover bears the standard 6c airmail postage plus a further 10c for special
delivery service. Curiously, this cover was posted through APO 708, the main Army
post office on Santo, as can be established by the use of an APO 708 cds.


1 February 1943 - The sender of this letter was a former member of CUB One, on Guadalcanal. He was rotated
to Santo and temporarily attached to ACORN (Red) 2. Again, the letter was posted through APO 708.



Navy 140

24 August 1943 - Unusual inter-unit mail from a Navy serviceman to a relative at the Navy Training
School in San Diego. The meaning of the direction "Commissary Personal" is unclear.


21 January 1944 - Navy 140, the main Navy Post Office on Santo, was located at Pier One near
Segond Channel. This cover was sent by a serviceman at Base Hospital #6 nearby.


16 July 1944 - A cover from a cook in the galley of USS Curtiss (AV4), the receiving ship
based at the Navy Seaplane Base in Segond Channel. USS Curtiss was launched
on 30 April 1940 and saw action at Pearl Harbour before serving at Santo.


18 October 1943 - CASU 10 was a Carrier Aircraft Service Unit on Santo from 10 July 1943 to
July 1944. Its postal service was provided by Navy 140.


16 August 1944 - CASU 40 was a Carrier Aircraft Service Unit originally stationed on Efate but
moved to Santo in July 1943. It remained there until March 1945. As with CASU 10, its
postal service was provided by Navy 140.



Navy 8045 - the 7th Navy Construction Battalion

12 January 1943 - The 7th NCB reached Santo on 12 August 1942, in company with Lion One.
It remained until 13 December 1943 and had its own post office. From 2 September 1942
a series of 8000 numbers was assigned to the construction units as overseas mailing
addresses. It was not successful and was abandoned on 15 February 1943.


11 November 1942 - In spite of the 8000 series, this letter simply carries "7th U.S.N. Constr. Batt."
as a return address. The primitive cancel bears no date but the letter
(still enclosed) is dated 11 November 1942.



Navy 8085 - the 15th Navy Construction Battalion

6 December 1942 - Navy 8085 was assigned to the 15th NCB. The Navy 8085 office sent its mail
to Navy 140 (the main Fleet Post office on Santo) for dispatch.



Navy 8210 - the 40th Navy Construction Battalion

25 February 1943 - Navy 8210 was assigned to the 40th NCB as a mailing address. The 40th NCB
operated on Santo from 3 February 1943 to 25 November 1943.


5 May 1943 - Following the withdrawal of the 8000 series as mailing addresses,
construction battalions were authorised to give their own identity as the
return address. Here, the sender has used the 40th NCB in this fashion.



Navy 8235 - the 44th Navy Construction Battalion

20 December 1943 - Navy 8235 was assigned to the 44th NCB as a mailing address.
The sender here has used the 44th NCB as his address.



Navy 10454 - the 1029th Navy Construction Battalion Detachment

31 March 1944 - The 1029th Navy Construction Battalion Detachment was operational on Santo from
31 December 1943 to 1945, and was assigned Post Office Branch 10454.



Navy 10990 - the 3rd Special Navy Construction Battalion

30 May 1943 - The 3rd Special Navy Construction Battalion was operational on Santo from
at least May 1943 to 14 September 1944, and was assigned Post Office Branch 10990.