John and Christopher Phipps Invent the "Dandy Roll" Making Machine-Made Paper Resemble Hand-Made or Laid Paper

Only a few years after machine-made paper was widely available paper manufacturers desired to make machine-made paper resemble hand-made or laid paper, and in 1825 stationers and inventors John Phipps and Christopher Phipps of London received British patent No. 5075 for "An Improvement or Improvements in Machinery for Making Paper." In their specification they described "the employment of a roller the cylinder part of which is formed of 'laid' wire. . . the effect produced by said roller is that of making impressions upon the sheet of paper upon which said roller passes and thus the paper so made has the appearance of 'laid' paper." This device was known as a "dandy roll."