Confederate Money

On February 4, 1861, the Confederate States of America was formed, and almost immediately the first Confederate notes were printed – the famous “Montgomery” notes. These would be followed by many designs over the next four years. The seventy different designs or “type” notes are eagerly sought today by collectors, historians and family historians, and a collection of Confederate currency offers fascinating insights into the tumultuous Civil-War period. Pierre Fricke examines these series of Confederate notes, highlighting the history and circumstances in which they were created. This easy-to-read, fun and educational book offers an introduction to the often beautiful notes that financed the Confederacy.

In 1861, as this story opens with the Yankee raid on the salt works at Cedar Key, Florida, a Confederate dollar is worth 90 cents in gold or silver. The Yankee soldiers, in their zeal to destroy the important Confederate salt works, kill young Henry Ferns step-pa, who has brought Henry to the Gulf Coast town on his first train ride. From that moment on, Henry's mind is locked on revenge. His goal to find the Yankee killers leads him throughout the South and much of the North as the war spreads. He studies medicine and offers aid to whichever side he needs to move through at the time. Through shrewd dealings he manages to amass $40,000 in Confederate paper money. Henry realizes that the Yankees are going to win the war or, at best, the South will end it a draw. In either case, the Confederate money will not be worth as much as silver or gold, so he sets out to change it into specie. Henery's adventures take him into both sides of the Battles of Shiloh Church, Chickamauga, and Olustee. With his charismatic personality and keen judgment, Henry manages to thrive even as the war rages, persisting in changing his paper fortune into silver and gold. He is as generous with his family, friends, and those he perceives to be in need as he is ruthless with those he knows to be his enemies. By the time Sherman marches through Atlanta in late 1864, the Confederate dollar has declined to 28 for one in silver or gold. When Sherman reaches Savannah, its worth is 45 to one. When Lee surrenders the next April, its worth is 80 to one. One month later it has fallen to 1,000 to one. Shortly after this, Henry undertakes a daring raid on the hidden Confederate treasury to bring him to his financial goal.

The 10th Edition of Confederate States Paper Money covers both Confederate and Southern States issues of the American Civil War (1861 - 1865) and the Reconstruction period • Know the value of your notes; prices are listed for six grades. • Exclusive photographs • Date on uncut sheets, advertising notes, errors, bogus and enigmatical issues. • The most complete coverage of Upham and other facsimile notes. • Fascinating information about the Confederacy and the individual Southern States. Fore more than 40 years this catalog has been a primary source of data on Confederate currency.

Confederate Currency Exhibition Catalogue is the companion book to the nationally acclaimed traveling exhibition by John W. Jones. The exhibition pairs images of enslaved Africans engraved on Confederate money with paintings inspired by the engravings.The popular exhibition has broken museum attendance records and has been critiqued and described in articles in 456 publications, including The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and Time magazine. CNN, PBS and NPR.In the book, slaves are shown clearing farmlands, planting cotton, hoeing fields, picking cotton, baling cotton, carrying cotton, bringing cotton bales to the market, steamboats and trains. There are bank notes showing slaves cooking for their white masters in SC, picking sugar cane in Tennessee and Alabama, harvesting turpentine in Georgia, carrying tobacco in Texas, feeding a horse in Virginia, harvesting corn in Missouri, working in a factory in NC, and even working on a wheat farm for George Washington.This book is the first documentation of slavery on Confederate and Southern money in one collection, and is sure to become an indispensable reference work for paper money collectors. The introduction, five scholarly essays and time-line will interest historians, museum professional, students and general readers. It includes a free CD-ROM with images of hundreds of additional currencies that show depictions of slavery.

In 1861, as this story opens with the Yankee raid on the salt works at Cedar Key, Florida, a Confederate dollar is worth 90 cents in gold or silver. The Yankee soldiers, in their zeal to destroy the important Confederate salt works, kill young Henry Ferns step-pa, who has brought Henry to the Gulf Coast town on his first train ride. From that moment on, Henry's mind is locked on revenge. His goal to find the Yankee killers leads him throughout the South and much of the North as the war spreads. He studies medicine and offers aid to whichever side he needs to move through at the time. Through shrewd dealings he manages to amass $40,000 in Confederate paper money. Henry realizes that the Yankees are going to win the war or, at best, the South will end it a draw. In either case, the Confederate money will not be worth as much as silver or gold, so he sets out to change it into specie. Henery's adventures take him into both sides of the Battles of Shiloh Church, Chickamauga, and Olustee. With his charismatic personality and keen judgment, Henry manages to thrive even as the war rages, persisting in changing his paper fortune into silver and gold. He is as generous with his family, friends, and those he perceives to be in need as he is ruthless with those he knows to be his enemies. By the time Sherman marches through Atlanta in late 1864, the Confederate dollar has declined to 28 for one in silver or gold. When Sherman reaches Savannah, its worth is 45 to one. When Lee surrenders the next April, its worth is 80 to one. One month later it has fallen to 1,000 to one. Shortly after this, Henry undertakes a daring raid on the hidden Confederate treasury to bring him to his financial goal.

Back for a 10th edition, this numismatic industry bible has updated pricing and expanded listings. Collectors and history buffs will love the coverage of the Southern states issues along with the in-depth information on engravers and printers. There is also a must-read section on the financial history of paper money. Nine successful editions prove that this reference sets the standard for the Confederate states and Southern states paper money markets. Features: Detailed sections on facsimile notes, bogus notes and in-depth coverage of printing errors; Exciting section covering Southern states and updated pricing.

Since shortly after the end of the Civil War, genuine Confederate paper money has been the subject of much research. While a number of publications are available today that describe and catalog the genuine currency, the availability of published information on its counterfeit counterpart is limited. What is available is somewhat incomplete, inaccurate and general in scope. This work is specifically concerned with the counterfeit currency that was produced and passed with genuine Confederate paper money during the Civil War years. The first part of the book is an historical narrative that discusses the events and people involved in the production and passing of counterfeit currency, and the countermeasures of the Confederate Treasury Department to protect its already weak medium of exchange from losing even more value. The second part of the book is an illustrated catalog that presents descriptions of all known examples of counterfeit Confederate currency. Over 180 illustrations are included and show most of the counterfeit notes. The appendix provides a brief, nontechnical explanation of the printing processes--relief printing, intaglio printing, and lithography--used in the mid-nineteenth century to manufacture counterfeit currency.