Universal Machine Postmarks

of Great Britain & Northern Ireland

by Paul T Carter

A history and detailed checklist of Universal stamp-cancelling machines and their dies (including unified dies, from 1933 onwards, in Hey-Dolphin and Krag single-impression machines).
Includes overall dates of use for all types of machine, providing a timeline for the history of mechanisation at each office.
To open your chosen section, click one of the blue buttons below (scroll down the page to see them all). The geographical sections are data files, which may need magnifying - you can use zoom and download options, both available when you open the file.
Information frequently updated - most recently on 24 September 2026

Listings of Krag & Hey-Dolphin machine postmarks can be found at the following sites:

→ Krag Machine Postmarks of Great Britain & Ireland

→ Hey-Dolphin Machine Postmarks of Great Britain & Ireland

Universal Machine Postmarks - introduction

(here you will find lists of Early Machine Installations, a gallery of Images of those Early Postmarks, a guide to Styles of Dies, checklists of Triangular Codes and a glossary of Abbreviations)

England (North & Midlands)

England (North & Midlands) - counties as far south as Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Lincolnshire

England (South)

England (South) - counties as far north as Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk - but excluding London

London postal districts

Wales

Scotland

Northern Ireland

Ireland - additional section (to 1922)

Channel Islands & Isle of Man

NOTE: Paid dies (which were used on mail prepaid in cash) appear in the following sections...

Paid dies - England

Paid dies - London

Paid dies - Wales

Paid dies - Scotland

Paid dies - N.Ireland

Paid dies - CI and IoM

The British Postmark Society (BPS) exists to promote and to co-ordinate the study and collection of British postal markings (particularly of the 20th and 21st centuries), and the means and mechanisms by which they are applied, and to publish and disseminate the results of our studies.

The Society's publications include the BPS Journal, and a number of books about different types of postmark, including Krag Machine Postmarks of Great Britain & Ireland by Paul T Carter (second edition published 2022, available as a free PDF download).

www.britishpostmarksociety.org.uk

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