- Up through the 1830s, the postal system was complicated, expensive and inefficient. Postal rates varied based on distance sent and the number of pages. Additionally, the recipient was expected to pay the postage upon receipt, so the postal service also wasted resources delivering mail that some recipients ultimately refused. The system's inefficiency was not keeping pace with the industrial revolution.
- In the late 1830s, Hill began advocating the postal reform in England that eventually swept the world. He proposed the single rate of a penny for regular mail. Hill also suggested the sender pay postage, and that the sender affix an adhesive stamp to the letter to prove paid postage.
- The penny black was the first postage stamp used by the British postal service. It cost one "penny" and had a profile of Queen Victoria on a "black" background, hence the name. Hill hired famous engraver Henry Corbould to create the printing plate for the stamps. The penny black became official postage on May 6, 1840.
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