Guide to the Records of De La Rue Company Ltd (as filmed by the AJCP), 1863-1946

 

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Collection context

Summary

Collection number:
M1136-M1153
Creator:
The De La Ru Company
Extent:
160 items
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.

Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)

Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Available for reference.

Background

Content Summary:
Selections from correspondence books comprising correspondence with Agents-General in London and the Office of the Crown Agents for the Colonies concerning the design, printing and supply of postage stamps, revenue stamps, postal stationery, printing plates and other items. The records relate to all the Australian colonies (later States), New Zealand, Straits Settlements, Malay States, Borneo, Sarawak, Labuan, Tonga, Fiji, Gilbert and Ellice Islands, and Solomon Islands.
Biographical / Historical:

The De La Rue Company was founded by Thomas De La Rue (1793-1866) who set up as a printer in London in 1816. In 1853 the firm printed draft and receipt stamps for the Board of Inland Revenue and on the basis of its performance it secured the printing of the new Fourpence, Sixpence and One Shilling postage stamps in 1855. De La Rue used typography rather than the line–engraved process by which Perkins, Bacon and Co. printed the One Penny and Twopence stamps.

Perkins, Bacon and Co. had supplied the printing plates for the first postage stamps issued in Australia and New Zealand. The Western Australian plates were later returned to London. In 1858 Penrose Julyan was appointed Senior Agent–General for the Crown Colonies. He was dissatisfied with Perkins, Bacon and Co. and in 1860 began to place orders for colonial postage stamps with the De La Rue Company. In 1862 the Western Australian plates were surrended by Perkins, Bacon and Co. and Western Australia's stamps were printed by De La Rue until 1902. De La Rue supplied plates, dandy rolls, stamp paper and other stationery to all the Australian governments and it printed some issues of stamps of South Australia, Queensland and Tasmania, as well as Western Australia. In 1874. De La Rue printed an issue of New Zealand stamps. The first issues of Straits Settlements stamps (overprinted Indian stamps) were printed in 1866 and stamps were printed for Labuan in 1878, Sarawak in 1887, Fiji in 1890, Tonga in 1897 and the Federated Malay States in 1899.

In addition to postage stamps the De La Rue Company printed and supplied revenue stamps, currency, passports and many other items to colonial governments throughout the British Empire.

The archives of the De La Rue Company were deposited in the British Museum in 1969. They were transferred to the National Postal Museum in 1973.

References: EASTON, John. The De La Rue history of British and foreign postage stamps, 1855 to 1901. London. Faber and Faber, 1958.

Melville, F.J. Postage stamps in the making. Edited by John Easton. London, Faber and Faber, 1949.

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Available for Access.
Conditions Governing Use:
Many of the records digitised as part of the AJCP are still in copyright. Readers wishing to publish or reproduce documents should seek permission, in the first instance, from the owner of the original material.
Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.

Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)

Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact: