A Canadian stamp-dealer friend of mine (Beverly Fox, of Weeda Stamps, Ltd.)recently visited Cuba for a week, on vacation. Beverly publishes a brief stamp newsletter online called "Fox Tales on Stamps", and includes a quiz every other week. Her visit resulted in this week's quiz question, which triggered my thoughts on the philatelic outcome of the Spanish/American War of 1898. The following brief synopsis covers how the United States became a colonial power, and how a number of philatelic issues came about.
US sugar producers in Cuba were sympathetic to Cuban insurrectionists who were trying to oust Spain from control of Cuba in 1895, and very frustrated with a Spanish colonial government that they felt limited their ability to make money in Cuba. There had been numerous Cuban insurrections, all with the expressed aim of freeing the country from the Spanish, just as Jose de San Martin, Simon Bolivar, and a number of other Latin American leaders had wrested most of Spain's colonies in the New World from her. The Insurrectionists were having little success, and Americans were sympathetic, but not willing to openly support the Cuban insurrectionists. However, when the powder magazine on the USS Maine blew up in Havana Harbor, the United Stated declared war on Spain. The Spanish-American war lasted about five months, with Spain losing every encounter. As the result of the war, Spain virtually lost all its overseas possessions except those in and around Africa, and the United States became a colonial power. The Treaty with Spain ending the Spanish-American War saw Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Guam in the Marianna Islands, and several other, smaller pieces of real estate, transferred to the United States. Spain, after losing Guam to the US, which is the hub of the Marianna Islands, sold the rest to Germany, along with the Caroline Islands (Germany had already assumed administrative authority over another Spanish claim in the Pacific, the Marshall Islands).
The United States occupied Cuba for four years - 1898-1902 - and US stamps were overprinted "CUBA". These replaced the Spanish stamps inscribed "Cuba" that had been issued until 1898. In 1899, before the US turned Cuba over to its elected leadership, the US caused a five-stamp set to be issued - Scott #227-31. Four of these stamps were re-issued in 1905, with minor changes to the design - Scott #233-4, 236-7. These were the first issues of the Republic of Cuba.
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