John Dickinson (1782-1869)

John Dickinson

At the age of fifteen John Dickinson was apprenticed to a stationer, soon becoming fully involved in the paper trade. By 1804 he had founded his own company 'John Dickinson Stationery Limited', eventually setting up his first paper mill in 1809 at the site of a former flour mill at Apsley in Hertforshire.

Additional mills were opened at Nash Mill in 1811 and Croxley in 1850. The river and canal at Apsley and Nash Mills provided power for the mills and transport for materials and product.

Meanwhile he had been experimenting with methods of making security paper by the introduction of cotton, flaxen or silken thread or other substances into the paper pulp during manufacture. His silk thread paper was adopted in 1829 for Exchequer Bonds and other Government documents, and later, as the Post Office developed, for letter sheets including the Mulready envelopes.

When the first adhesive stamps were envisaged Dickinson hoped his paper would be used and trial printings were submitted. He was actually awarded the contract but to his great disappointment Rowland Hill rescinded the decision, mainly on account of cost, and decided in favour of a watermarked paper from another supplier.

Nevertheless, the fame of his silk thread paper and other inventions had spread abroad and Dickinson's processes were worked under licence by the Bavarian Paper Mill at Pasing and used for the first Bavarian stamps, also, as we know, for the 'Strubeli' stamps of Switzerland.

In more recent times the company went from strength to strength, adopting the 'Lion' brand as the company logo in 1910 and in 1911 established the famous Basildon Bond brand.

Dickinson Robinson Group Ltd (DRG) was formed in 1966, creating one of the world's largest stationery and packaging companies. In 1999, the company relocated from Apsley (Hertfordshire) to the village of Sawston south of Cambridge.