The Basildon Bond brand was developed in 1911 by Millington and Sons, a London-based stationery manufacturer. The brand became the property of John Dickinson Stationery when Millingtons was acquired in 1918.

In reality, the brand name was arrived at purely by chance. In the summer of 1911, Millington's was considering the introduction of a new rag writing paper, and some of the directors of the company were staying at a country house in a little village in the Thames Valley in Berkshire. One of the matters arising was a name for this new paper brand. The directors decided to take the name from the house in which they were staying, Basildon Park. Therefore, it has no link with the more famous Basildon in Essex.