Overview

This book presents an insight into the social as well as the postal history of the Penny Post. In this account we read of men who campaigned vigourously against often slow, backward, thinking governments to bring down to us today an efficient postal system. Names such as Rowland Hill who established uniform Penny Post in this country we are familiar with, others such as William Dockwra, who created an efficient postal system in London as early as 1680 and Ralph Allen of Bath, who developed Byeway and Cross Roads post throughout England and Wales in 1720, are less familiar to us, but it is these men as well as many others who recognised the need to provide cheap means of communication between peoples here and abroad, and fought with missionary zeal to do so. Accompanied by a collection of line drawings and photographs this study is not only of interest to the philatelist but also to the social historian, for the account traces the historical background to the reform that has finally resulted in the Postal System we know today. Also indicated is the range of items obtainable by the keen collector - early date envelopes, broadsheets and pamphlets, letter scales and stamp boxes, personal correspondence and newspaper cartoons. Frank Staff is a well known postal historian. He has written two books on the history of postcards, ""The Picture Postcard and Its Origins"" and ""Picture Postcards and Travel"", both published by The Lutterworth Press. He is also the author of ""The Valentine and Its Origins"".

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