Virginia Currency
September 1, 1775 - James River Bank Forms
An emission of £350,000 in Treasury notes redeemable by January 1, 1784 was authorized on July 17, 1775. There was not enough heavy rag paper to complete the printing of this issue so the emission was continued with the large size engraved forms remaining from the 1773 Ashby series for the 20s, £2, £3 notes as well as for a new £5 note. By Late August it was clear the Asby forms would be exhausted before the emission was completed. From September 1st, 1775 the government used the James River Bank forms that had been left over from the April 1, 1773 emergency issue to complete the July 17, 1775 emission.
The blanks on the front of the forms were filled in by hand but unlike the earlier issue inapplicable text was not put in parentheses. The printed text in the body of the note reads: "We ----- and Company Bankers in Virginia, Promise to pay to ---- the Bearer on demand ----- Pounds Current money Witness our Cashier." The blank spaces were filled in with the following continuous handwritten text (the £8 note below is used as the example): "Eight Pounds Current Money of / Virginia pursuant to an ordinance of / Convention passed the 17th / of July 1775." The handwritten date and signatures were added below. The backs of the forms were left blank. However, in the earlier (1773) issue of the James River forms, the backs were printed with: the denomination, a "Death to counterfeit" warning and a typeset border. Some 20s notes with printed backs, left over from the earlier issue, were filled in and used in this emission. James River forms were issued for the 10s and 20s notes with the addition of £4, £5, £8, £10 and £ 12 notes.
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20s Serial Number: 14/1366 VA 09/01/75
Signer: Philip Johnson, William Norvell and Robert Carter Nicholas .
Size: 75 x 164 mm
Comments: Numbered and signed in brown ink. This is an indented note with a vignette of a ship engraved in the upper left corner. The back is blank. Click here to view the blank back
Provenance: Purchased through the Robert H. Gore, Jr. Numismatic Endowment from the EANA mail bid auction of 04/26/97, lot 333.
