[Published by kind permission of the author.]

South Australia was effectively the last of the Australian colonies to introduce stamps for the prepayment of postage. This happened at the beginning of 1855, five months after Western Australia, 14 months after Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania) and five years after New South Wales and Victoria had followed this course. Queensland was the last colony, of course, to actually issue its own stamps, but this happened as a result of its separation from New South Wales in 1859. Hence, the future colony of Queensland had used stamps for prepayment of postage since 1850.

Planning the First Stamps
Throughout February 1853, the South Australian authorities gave consideration to adopting prepayment of postage by stamps. No doubt this was prompted by the successful operation of the system in New South Wales and Victoria, although at this stage Van Diemen’s Land and Western Australia had yet to take firm steps to adopt the new system. On February 28 1853, the Postmaster-General of South Australia, John Watts, was asked to explain how he proposed to produce stamps. Watts responded on April 1 saying that he had had a sketch prepared of a stamp “similar to that used in England.” This sketch was of a 2d denomination, which Watts expected would be the lowest rate of postage and so could be used in multiples for inland and ship letter postage. On the advice of Sydney’s postal authorities, Watts recommended ordering an initial supply of one million 2d stamps from England, as well as a printing press and plates being supplied to South Australia so that further stamp supplies could be printed in Adelaide. Watts concluded by saying that this would allow the proposed system “to be carried into immediate effect without the delay consequent upon the providing of an apartment etc. for the setting up and working of the press”.

The first stamps of South Australia comprises four values issued in 1855-57

Arrangements were made with Perkins, Bacon & Co. in London to quote for the printing of one million 2d stamps. The firm’s quote was submitted on September 3 1853 to the Colonial Agent in London, Edward Barnard. The quote also included the manufacture of a printing plate of 240 impressions, and the supply of watermarked stamp paper, ink pigments and a printing press to South Australia. Perkins Bacon promised delivery within four months of the order. The order was confirmed on September 12.

Printing the First Stamps
The Perkins Bacon’s engraver, William Humphreys, cut a die for the 2d South Australian stamp. Watts’ sketch of a stamp design was forwarded to London, but since this has not survived, it is not possible to say how closely the engraver followed the sketch. It is well known, however, that South Australia’s first stamp image comprises relatively little original engraving. The Queen’s profile is the same “Diadem head” engraved earlier for the New South Wales “Large square” stamps. The background in the South Australian stamp is the same pattern engraved for the first stamps of Chile, which Perkins Bacon printed.

At the same time as the work for South Australia was proceeding, Perkins Bacon were engaged in preparing Van Diemen’s Land “Chalon head stamps and the “Queen-on-throne” stamps of Victoria. All three colonies’ stamps were printed from plates of 240 impressions (20 rows of 12) so that the same size paper incorporating a six-pointed star watermark could be used.

Meanwhile back in Adelaide, it was decided that 1d and 6d stamps would also be required under the recently adopted “Local Post Office” Act. The earlier assumption of Postmaster- General watts that multiples of 2d stamps could be used for hieher amounts of postage had evidently proved impracticable, and also a 1d stamp was now needed for town letters (for delivery in the same town of posting). Steps were taken to place an order with Perkins Bacon for 200,000 Id stamps and 500,000 6d stamps to be printed and shipped to Adelaide, together with the plates, watermarked paper and inks for future printing to be carried out locally. The firm’s quote for this work was accepted bv the Colonial Agent in London on April 2 2 1854. Perkins Bacon promised delivery within 13 weeks.

The first stamp of Chile provided Perkins Bacon with the background pattern for South Australia’s first stamp issue.

Notwithstanding the promised delivery dates for the two South Australian orders, Perkins Bacon took considerably longer to complete the work. Dispatch from London of the 2d stamp did not occur until April 1854, seven months after the order had been placed and dispatch of the 1d and 6d stamps was delayed even longer – it was June 1855 when this happened, 14 months after the order was placed. Progress was slow at Perkins Bacon at this time because the firm was experiencing difficulties in maintaining the supply of British stamps and work on colonial stamps was sidelined.

The First Stamps are Issued
The stock of 2d stamps was received in Adelaide and held by the Colonial Storekeeper until September 20 1854, when the stamps were transferred to the Post Office. The authorities had to consider first how to create a Stamp Department to carry out stamp printing in Adelaide. And South Australia was distinctive among Australian colonies in undertaking stamp printing in its Post Office establishment throughout the 19th century, instead of allocating this work to the government printing offices. The printing of all stamps by the South Australian Post Office continued until 1909, when the printing works under J.B. Cooke was merged with Victoria’s stamp printing office marking the beginning of the Note Printing Branch in Melbourne.

The 2d stamp was first placed on sale throughout South Australia on January 1 1855. The 1d and 6d stamps were then received in Adelaide during October 1855 and the issue of these two stamps took place without delay on October 27. The late arrival of the 6d stamps was a particular concern, as it caused usage of 2d stamps to be very high and by the end of July 1855, it became necessary to make plans for a further supply to be printed in Adelaide. Consideration was given to where the stamp printing works could be set up. On September 11 the Public Works Office advised that “…the apartment next adjoining the one through which the prisoners pass into the Supreme Court House, and at present used at a lumber mom, can be now obtained for that very purpose.” The locally-printed stamps are easily distinguishable from their 1854 London prmted counterparts by the colours. The deep rich colours that Perkins Bacon achieved in printing were never matched in the Adelaide printings.

The Saga of the One Shilling Stamp
On January 19 1855, Postmaster-General Watts suggested that a 1/- stamp “would be a great convenience to the public and also tend to facilitate the business of this Department”. This was approved and (after a considerable delay) an order was placed with Perkins Bacon in May 1856 for the supply of 500,000 1/- stamps, along with the plate, paper and ink supplies. Consequently, South Australia had placed three orders over as many years to have the full complement of its first stamp series produced. Had the authorities been more prescient in fixing these stamp denominations, much time and effort would have been saved. The issue of the new 1/- stamp involved unusual complications that stretched matters out much further. On February 19 1857, postmaster-General Watts reported that the newly-received 1/- stamps “…are of the same size, the same oblong form as those of lower rates now in use in this department and nearly all of the same colour as those of the 6d. value, a resemblance which in the hurry of business, especially by candle light, will inevitably lead to much confusion”. Watts went on to say:

“Under the circumstances I have the honour to request that the dies, together with the colouring material and the half million stamps recently received, be returned to the Agent-General with a request that the original order as to shape and colour may be strictly complied with. Watts had originally submitted a sketch of an octagonal stamp design (no doubt inspired by Great Britain’s 1/- embossed stamp) to London for guidance in preparing South Australia’s 1/- stamp. He was aggrieved that this course had not been followed and particularly that the violet colour of the 1/- stamp could be confused under poor lighting with the blue colour of the 6d stamp.

Watts recommended that the 1/- violet stamp not be issued. This is what happened, although his intention, foreshadowed in his report above, to return the whole consignment to London was not carried out. The Adelaide authorities proceeded to destroy the entire printing of the 1/- violet stamp – a remarkable step taken by an economy conscious bureaucracy (For further details see Geoff Kellow’s “Australasian Rarities” in Australasian STAMPS, March 1999).

Perkins Bacon’s premises in London where South Australia’s first stamps of 1854 were produced.

On May 20 1857, Watts submitted a new report within which he now recommended that the 1/- printing plate be retained in Adelaide and used to print a new supply of 1/- stamps in a different colour (“say buff”) that would not be confused with the 6d value, and that the stock of 1/- violet stamps be destroyed. Watts’ recommendations were accepted by his superiors on May 29, 1857. The destruction by burning of the 500,000 1/- violet stamps was carried out on June 5 1857 at the Adelaide GPO. During June 1857, a local printing of the 1/- stamp in orange was undertaken and this was first issued on July 8.

There is an interesting postscript i to the saga of the 1/- Violet stamp. Even though the Adelaide authorities had carried out a rather complete destruction, some 18 examples of this stamp exist today. Perkins Bacon had delivered exactly 500,000 1/- stamps to Adelaide, which meant that a part sheet of 80 stamps was included, as the total figure is not divisible by 240. From the block of 160 stamps left in London, a few examples were “liberated onto the UK stamp market in the early 1890s (Examples of this stamp were also extracted by Perkin Bacon from its stock in 1861 and obliterated “CANCELLED” at the behest of Ormond Hill, Rowland Hill’s nephew – today, four examples are recorded). As Geoff Kellow notes in his article, the 14 unused examples of the 1/- Violet stamp equates with the 14 examples known of the 4d Western Australian “Inverted frame” stamp. However, the current SC catalogue price for the 1/- Violet is £4,750 and compares to £60,000 for the 4d Inverted frame!

An interior view of Perkins Bacon’s stamp printing activities showing the presses used for South Australia’s first stamps.

Replacement of the First Stamps
From the 1850s onwards, supplies of the 1d, 2d, 6d and 1/- stamps were printed by the South Australian Post Office in Adelaide. Rouletting was introduced in 1859 and continued for nearly a decade until proper perforation was adopted. The Star watermark paper continued to be used for these recess stamps.

The Perkins Bacon printing plates continued to be used until it became necessary to replace these. A second printing plate for the 2d stamp was supplied by Perkins Bacon early in 1864. However, when it then became necessary to acquire another 2d plate the job was given to De La Rue. Perkins Bacon had lost colonial stamp printing to De La Rue in 1862. The latter firm specialised in letterpress printing and when De La Rue received orders for new stamp plates, it proceeded to make letterpress plates in new designs. Consequently, South Australia’s recess printing plates were replaced whenever it needed a new plate for a particular stamp value. The first value from the first series to be replaced was the 2d stamp, which ended with the issue of a 2d De La Rue stamp in August 1868. Next, the Id stamp was replaced by a 1d De La Rue stamp issued in January 1875. The 6d stamp was replaced by a new issue in April 1887. Alone among the first series, the 1/- stamp continued to remain current throughout the 19th century. The 1/- stamp (its colour was switched from orange to brown in 1863) was only needed in quantities of less than 50,000 a year and this did not wear out the Perkins Bacon plate. The 1/- stamp was finally replaced in 1902 when the new series of Long stamps  was required as a result of changes following Federation.

The printing press supplied by Perkins Bacon to South Australia that was used to print the first stamps in Adelaide.