New York Currency
May 12, 1755
An emission of £10,000 in legal tender Bills of Credit to be redeemed by November of 1762. This was the fifth of eleven emissions authorized between May 10, 1746 and April 21, 1760 to assist with military related expenses. All of these emission were printed by James Parker in New York. The basic style of the emissions are the same but each has some unique features. From Parker's first emission on May 10, 1746 through the emission of May 12,1755 he alternated the city seal from one emission to the next, first on the left side then on the right side, then back to the left. The May 12, 1755 emission was the last issue with the arms of the city of New York on the left. Lacking a left border cut it was similar to the notes of the May 10, 1746 emission, but in that emission the right border was a straight design continuing the top border, while in the May 12, 1755 emission the right border was the more usual fluted column. The notes were numbered horizontally at the lower right side of the seal. Each note had three signers. Larger quantities of the smaller denomination notes were printed, with 2,000 for the 5s and 10s notes, the quantities gradually decreased to only 200 for the £5 and £10 notes! Five shilling notes had not been issued for sixteen years, since the emission of October 20, 1739; also, this was the first New York issue of a £4 note since November 28, 1717. Denominations issued in this emission were: 5s, 10s, 20s, £2, £3, £4, £5 and £10.obv
£10 Serial Number: 50 NY 05/12/55
Signers: Gabriel Ludlow, James DePeyster and David Clarkson
Size: 55 x 96 mm (border dimensions: 53 x 94mm; the back is blank)
Comments: Signed and numbered in light brown ink. In the text of the bill there is a picture of two one pound weights with a Roman numeral 'V' superimposed on each. The seal of the City of New York appears as the left border on the front. Below the seal is a warning against counterfeiting. This warning was first included on the May 10, 1746 emission and from that emission to this emission of May 12, 1755 the apostrophe was missing from the word "Its." The back is made of a coarse brown paper. There are a few spots where the coarse paper has worn away showing the layers of the finer paper used for the front. Click here to view the blank back.
Provenance: Purchased through the Robert H. Gore, Jr. Numismatic Endowment from the EANA mail bid auction of 02/28/98, lot 344, graded Choice Very Fine.
