Scope and Content Note
Organized/Arranged: Organized in 3 boxes. Content lists accompany each box and portfolio. Processed items in boxes 1 and 2 are arranged alphabetically by issuing body, sub-arranged by date, and further arranged by denomination. The final folders in box 2 are home to oversize items such as uncut sheets of bills and a curatorial file containing twelve documents associated with the provenance and history of the collection. Box 3 contains a bound volume with bills arranged by geographic region of issuing body, sub-arranged by denomination, and further arranged by date.
Most bills have a handwritten serial number and one or more signatures from representatives of the issuing body, though some have faded or are otherwise illegible. This information, along with the printer’s name, when available, is recorded and searchable within the finding aid. Notes on the condition of some bills have been included because they are believed to have been altered purposefully in order to cancel the debt that this bill represented after it was redeemed for specie.
The counterfeiting of these bills was so common that many have the message: “’Tis Death to Counterfeit.” printed on the back. However, based on printers marks, signatures, and serial numbers, as well as other details provided in Eric P. Newman’s reference book The Early Paper Money of America (5th edition, Krause Publications, 2008), we are reasonably certain all bills in this collection are authentic