Who devised stamp machines?
STAMP MACHINES were devised by the Stamp Distribution Syndicate and fixed on pillar boxes in London by special arrangement with the GPO in May 1891. The machine supplied penny postage stamps (the ordinary rate for an inland letter), which were slotted into the back of a memo book containing 64 pages of notes, a number of full-page advertisements and a calendar for 1891. There was no charge for the book, the cost of which was covered by advertising revenue. The stamps had the initials SDS punctured through Queen Victoria’s neck.
The first Post Office stamp vending machine was invented by New Zealand mail clerk Robert J. Dickie and installed at Wellington Head Post Office in 1905. Britain followed New Zealand’s lead the following year, when the GPO made permanent installations inside London post offices. Outside GPO machines were introduced in 1921.
