Fred Reed
Paper Profiles
Civil War change notes Wide variety of emergency scrip collectible
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uring the Civil War, a hodgepodge of small paper scrip circulated in place of government coins, which were hoarded for their metal content. Gold coins commanded a premium over face value: 3 percent in January 1862. Brokers quoted the premium at 4 3/4 percent in early February. By June this premium had doubled. It reached 15 percent by July, when the government monetized postage stamps for use as small change. By the fall gold was at plus-32 percent. Even silver coins were valued at plus-12 percent in July, and more than 20 percent over face value by the fall. Naturally if a quarter was worth more than a 25 cents in bullion, the man on the street was reticent to spend it. When small change vanished from the marketplace, merchants, corporations and cities issued small notes to facilitate trade. In the Midwest transit tickets of the Chicago City Railway Co. formed a makeshift circulation. Convenience and the reputation of the company floated this brand of scrip. For good measure, the company dealt heavily in postage stamps, which it sold illegally at a premium to those wary of its own fare coupons. The problem with small change was not confined to the northern states. In the Confederate capital, Richmond, paper was in such short supply that some of the city of Richmond shinplasters were printed on the backs of leftover, unissued bank notes.
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The biggest problems were in the big cities of the northeast. Boston lithographer Louis Prang advertised he could supply “Small Currency manufactured at short notice, in most elegant style at moderate prices.” A New York City competitor circulated a small change advertising note that read “Small Currency—Hatch & Co. New York Lithographers 29 William St. are prepared to execute all orders for small paper currency, corporation orders &c. in the best style of lithography.” New York printer Ferd. Mayer advertised in the city’s newspapers: “Small Currency Bills. Corporations and merchants wishing to issue small currency bills will be furnished with samples and estimates on addressing the subscribers.” Mayer & Co. issued an illustrious advertising note for this trade on the “Shinplaster Bank.” Its legend reads: “The subscribers promise to furnish on demand from Ten to a Thousand Dollars worth of Shinplasters executed in the best style & at the lowest rate at Fulton St. New York.” In many locations, such as Cincinnati, local newspapers vied with job printing shops for the trade. Presses in hundreds of different print shops unleashed scrip of uncertain value on the public. A Brooklyn lady purchased an article in Fulton street in late summer 1862, and she received the following as change for a one dollar bill: “ferry tickets, shinplaster, counterfeit penny (probably a Civil War token), car ticket,
milk ticket, butcher’s I.O.U., grocer’s I.O.U., bread ticket, three cent postage stamps, one cent postage stamp and an ice cream ticket.” We know this story is not apocryphal. It was reported as news in the Chicago Evening Journal. Many local retailers availed themselves of the kinds of scrip Mayer and the others advertised. One issuer justified his notes with Franklin’s “Necessity is the Mother of Invention” aphorism. Another claimed “Military Necessity.” Many were worthless and fell to a loss to their final holders. Highly prized are the transitional notes with government stamps affixed for value. These were circulated by at least four merchants. A Philadelphia amusement saloon, Long’s Varieties, pasted one-cent stamps on thin cardboard with the business opposite the stamp. This made the stamp somewhat durable, but destroyed any future postal value. Most notes state they are redeemable in merchandise, bank notes or “current money.” In Brooklyn, N.Y., the Merchants’ Change Association pooled resources and backed its scrip with U.S. bonds deposited at a bank. Municipalities also issued small change notes, including Newark and Jersey City in the North, and Montgomery, Ala., and Richmond in the South. All remain wonderful objects for the history buff, and with the wide variety available a prime collectible, too. COINS JANUARY 2009
10/24/08 1:03:39 PM