A Civil War Shin Plaster from the town where I grew up!

[BillJones]

I grew up in Milton, Delware, which is in Sussex county in the southern half of the state. When I lived there the population was about 1,300. Today it might be 1,500 or 1,600.

 

Finding any tokens or paper money from Delaware is not easy. Therefore I never dreamed that I would find a piece of paper from my home town, but here it is.

 

 

I've been researching this piece, and have some information for an article that I'll get published somewhere. At any rate the "J. Ponder & Son" stands for John and James Ponder who ran a number of businesses in this small town in the mid 19th century. AND James was elected governor of the state of Delaware in 1870!

 

This was my "big find" at the recent FUN show.

[RI AL]

That's neat. I had a note from the "Bank of Burrillville", which is the next town south from me here in RI. My town didn't exist when the Burrillville note was printed. I gave it to one of my private students who WAS from Burrillville when he was accepted into the NASA program. (I can't take credit for the NASA part...I just taught him piano, music theory and composition). Talk about SCARY smart!!!

 

RI AL

[WoodenJefferson]

Whay did you refer to this note as a "Shin Plaster"

 

I googled my answer...never knew this?

 

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the name comes from the quality of the paper, which was so cheap that with a bit of starch it could be used to make paper-mâché-like plasters to go under socks and warm shins.

 

A book roughly contemporary with the term, John Russell Bartlett's The Dictionary of Americanisms (New York, 1849), defines a shinplaster as "A cant term for a bank-note, or any paper money. It probably came into use in 1837, when the banks suspended specie payment, and when paper money became depreciated in value." Then the book quotes the New York Tribune of December 3, 1845: "The people may whistle for protection, and put up with what shinplaster rags they can get."

 

[rrantique]

That's a cool find Bill. (thumbs u

[michael]

cool find

 

is it a remainder or i think a proof??

[BillJones]

My best guess is that the piece is a signed Proof. The dealer from whom I purchased the piece spoke of a sheet of notes with the 5, 10, 25 and 50 cent denominations. This one had not been part of that group I gathered.

 

He claimed that he had never seen one that had been signed, but upon close examination I saw a very faint signature on this piece between the hole-punch cancellations. When I showed this to his assistant, she agreed that there was some writing in the signature area, but it was not readable given the limits of a bourse floor. This piece is CU or very close to it.

 

Perhaps Mr. Ponder had these pieces printed and signed or had them signed faintly as an experiment. Then he decided not to proceed with the project and cancelled the notes so that they could not be redeemed.

 

[michael]

thanks bill this is really interesting as moat were in sheets but these sheets either got distroyed or cut up and used for something else i think you can clal all THESE OBSOLETE CURRENCY AND CURRENTLY THESE UNAPPRECIATED PIECES OF financial paper history are ganing in popularity in fact in the currency markets obsoletes are leading the pack as the current market leaders of in demand currency to buy and collect due to the variety and rarity of some and mostly like nationals used to be they are topical and local well on the east coast with ny penn and ohio where 90% are and are within many budgets

 

i guess with the 1862 date as most all are dated many states were going to issue these shinplasters due to the coin shortage because of the civil war

 

but before this the federal govt steped in and passed a law that banks could not do this with paper and then the govt issued fractional currency

 

here is another unissued remainder shinplaster from my town