Harrison and Sons
Harrison and Sons was a major worldwide engraver and printer of postage stamps and banknotes. History The company was established in 1750 by Thomas Harrison in Warwick Lane, London; in 1839 Thomas Richard Harrison entered into partnership with John William Parker, creating Harrison and Co. It went through similar names and retained Harrison family ownership until 1979 when sold to Lonrho. Harrison and Sons printed its first stamp, a 1d Inland Revenue stamp for Montserrat, in 1866. This seems to be the only stamp printed by the company during the 19th century. It obtained its first Post Office contract in 1881. In 1910, a new factory opened in Hayes. The company won the contract to print the single colour United Kingdom Edward VII stamps in 1911 after the Post Office decided not to renew its contract with De La Rue. Initially, using printing machines manufactured by Timsons of Kettering, it went on to produce most of the British stamps over the 60-year period from the 1930s until the 1990s, including the first UK stamp using the photogravure method in 1934 and the first photogravure commemoratives in 1935 for Silver Jubilee of King George V. The first UK Christmas issue in