Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

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Woman seeks to collect on Civil War debt
Joan Kennedy Biddle is suing the city of Tampa over a $299.58 loan her great-grandfather Thomas Pugh Kennedy gave the city during the American Civil War, and she is seeking $22.7 million - the loan plus 8% annual interest. A promissory note given to her ancestor, on June 21, 1861, accounts that Kennedy loaned the money to the city, but she and her family claim the debt was never paid. "This thing has been in the family since the date on the note, and it has never been repaid. My daddy told me, and I certainly believe him."
by upi :: 2008-03-22 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

Sam Upham's Fakes - Counterfeit Treasury Notes of the Confederate States
A Southern gentleman wrote the Confederate Treasury secretary in 1861 that northerners "were preparing a large issue of counterfeit Treasury Notes of the Confederate States." There is no believable evidence that a plot was carried out by Federals. But the fact is that northern-made bogus Confederate facsimiles circulated south of the Mason Dixon Line. These notes plagued the Southern officials, economy and morale. Sam Upham was a snake oil salesman who is famous for fake Rebel notes. He began his rise to "fame" in March, 1862, when he bought an electrotype plate from the Philadelphia Inquirer that had been used to produce a replica Confederate $5 note.
by numismaster :: 2008-02-14 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

6 pre civil war coins worth $150,000 will be auctioned off
Mike Joyce calls it one of the biggest numismatic finds in recent history. The news editor of Coin World magazine doesn't disagree. Joyce will auction off 6 of the finest known examples of 1852 Charlotte Mint $5 Gold Liberty coins. A 7th rare coin, an 1850 Dahlonega Mint $5 Gold Liberty, will also be up for bid. 4 of the Charlotte Mint examples have been ranked by the Numismatics Guaranty Corporation as being in MS-63 condition, and hold estimated values of $25,000 apiece. The other two garnered even better grades of MS-64, holding estimated values of $50,000 each. The coins had previously been evaluated at a mere $200 each.
by naplesnews :: 2007-12-18 :: Collectors, Collectibles - Civil War

The Rebel and the Rose: What happened to the stockpile of Confederate gold
In the early 1990s, Gerald White became intrigued by the story of James A. Semple and lost Confederate gold. While researching he met Wesley Millett, who was also gathering information about Semple and the gold. Eventually White and Millett decided to collaborate on a book, and their project, "The Rebel and the Rose" has recently been released. It traces Semple's story. He was a Navy paymaster who, in May 1865, was entrusted with all the gold in the Confederate treasury: $86,000 in coins and bullion, the equivalent of $2M today. After hiding the treasure in the false bottom of a carriage, he and another man Edward M. Tidball disappeared.
by hnn.us :: 2007-11-22 :: Treasure Hunt: Lost Civil War Gold

Civil War -era U.S. Postage and Fractional Currency avidly collected
As a niche, perhaps no genre of U.S. currency is more avidly collected than U.S. Postage and Fractional Currency. These miniature pieces of paper money replaced change during the American Civil War, and for the last quarter century have had their own collector's organization: The Fractional Currency Collectors Board. When Treasury Secretary Salmon Chase's greenback inflation drove hard money from the marketplace, the U.S. Congress mistakenly monetized postage stamps to replace the coins, withdrawn from circulation. 124 million of these Postage Currency notes were issued, totaling $20.2 million in revenues. This included 45 million of the 5-cent Jefferson notes.
by numismaster :: 2007-10-10 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

Confederate Currency Now on Display in Tunica RiverPark Museum
The Tunica RiverPark museum is counting on a Confederate Currency new exhibit to teach visitors about a specific time of Southern history. The Confederate Currency bills are part of a collection of 322 notes. The Confederate States of America began issuing its own currency in April of 1861, just before the Civil War broke out. The South did not have the backing needed to fight a war, so they printed their own currency. This currency, backed by cotton instead of gold, was issued to millions of Southerners. When the South surrendered in 1865 and the Confederacy ceased to exist, the money became worthless, but it is now prized by collectors.
by - :: 2007-08-06 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

Newly found Hunley dime coin a highly valuable relic
The silver is gone, eaten away by corrosion, but the words "U.S. Dime" remain etched on what is the second coin recovered from the H.L. Hunley submarine since the $20 gold piece was found 6 years ago. The coin, roughly the size of a penny used today, was minted in 1841. The Lady Liberty on the front of the coin is barely visible. "U.S. Dime" on the back and the date can be clearly made out. The only other coin discovered onboard the submarine was a gold coin that is believed to have saved the life of Lt. George Dixon, the sub's commander during the Battle of Shiloh. A bullet hit the coin, which Dixon engraved to read: "Shiloh April 6, 1862 My Life Preserver."
by nationalgeographic :: 2007-03-23 :: Relics and Memorabilia - American Civil War

Rare collection of Confederate Paper Money and Bonds to be sold
R. M. Smythe & Co. announced that their Spring Paper Money & Coin Auctions will be held at their offices in New York, April 11-13, 2007. Included will be Part 10 of the Herb and Martha Schingoethe Collection, the largest Obsolete Paper Money collection ever to be offered at auction, and the Confederate Collection of the Western Reserve Historical Society, one of the most complete collections of Confederate Paper Money and Bonds at auction. Also included is the Western Reserve Historical Society's Collection of Postage Stamp Envelopes. The sale will also include Colonial and Continental Currency, and U. S. and International Coins.
by news-antique :: 2007-03-16 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

Images of slavery discovered on old Southern currency
Pictures of slaves often showed up on Southern banknotes issued by the Confederacy during the Civil War. That historical detail led John W. Jones to a project: He began collecting old banknotes, and pictures of them, showing images of slavery, then magnified the tiny engravings and painted enlarged copies onto large canvases. The result is his exhibit "The Color of Money," a study of art and history, which opened at the Museum in Myrtle Beach. One $10 bill showed George Washington out with his slaves, underlining that slavery was an integral part of the nation from the start and that many of the founders were slaveowners.
by wilmingtonstar :: 2006-08-22 :: Photographs, Pictures of Civil War

Civil War-Era $100 Note Goes for $2.1 Million
Two 19th century pieces of U.S. currency, including a $100 note issued during the Civil War, have sold for $2.1 million each. The sale fetched a record amount for paper money. The $100 note is a 1863-series gold certificate signed Dec. 13, 1866. The note was part of a series of currency the Union issued to help finance the Civil War.
by latimes :: 2006-06-24 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

The history of U.S. money - Civil War era
(1861) On the brink of bankruptcy and pressed to finance the Civil War, Congress authorizes the U.S. Treasury to issue paper money for the first time in the form of non-interest bearing treasury notes called demand notes. (1862) Demand notes are replaced by U.S. notes - called "greenbacks" because of the green tint introduced to discourage forging. (1863) The design of U.S. currency incorporates a Treasury seal and fine-line engraving. Cotton and linen paper are used. (1865) Gold certificates are issued, backing gold coin and bullion deposits. The Secret Service is established to control counterfeiting. At the time, an alarming 1/3 of all currency is fake.
by shreveporttimes :: 2006-05-18 :: Coins & Currency - Civil War-era

American Civil War in the News is a edited review of American Civil War related news and articles, providing collection of hand-picked 1861-1865 era history.