Confederate Paper Money Series Part VI: Bogus Notes (Part 1)

In the last edition of this blog series, we touched on the numerous counterfeit and altered notes that riddled the Confederate Paper money scene circulating during the American Civil War. From engraving quality to the paper used, it was determined that some fake notes out there were easier to detect than others. We also talked about the fact that even though notes were determined counterfeit, like the well-known Havana counterfeit, it did not and has not deterred collectors from wanting them.

In that same vein, we are now switching over to bogus notes and their appeal. What is a bogus note? It is defined as a fantasy note of types that were never actually issued by the authorities that are mentioned on the notes themselves. The most well-known of this type of note is the Female Riding Deer.

The Female Riding Deer Note

Never issued by the Confederacy, the Female Riding Deer note has been collected by many of those after Confederate paper money in general even though it is considered bogus. The note itself, while well-known in the South during the war, is thought to have been produced and brought to the South by the North. A lot of notes, many of them counterfeit and thought to be used to undermine the southern states’ currency, were created in the North and circulated by soldiers and others to purchase goods.

It is said that no official records by the Confederacy Treasury confirm that these notes are issued by the Confederacy and make no mention of the Female Riding Deer note. While a large amount of research has been done to figure out exactly where the notes originated from, it is still not possible to confirm the source and where the notes were printed.

The design itself features the Greek goddess Artemis. Holding a silver bow and arrows while riding a stag, no one knew who the actual figure on the notes was which lead to the translation of “a female riding a deer.” Many similar designs showed up on a number of notes including one by G.W. Holt from New Orleans. The $1.00 “plain” style, with the values in circles, was issued on January 1, 1862. There were also larger denominations, like the $2.00 and $3.00, that were not featured with circled values, with a box on the right end of them depicting a dog and safe design printed by Clark & Brisbie. While there is a large number of these types of examples, it is still hard to determine who came up with the original Female Riding Deer Note.

However difficult it was to determine who originated the notes, many have wondered about one designer in particular: S.C. Upham of Philadelphia. His work on certain notes bears a close similarity to Female Riding Deer examples, although he has stated that none of them were original with him.

To be continued…

Source: Confederate States Paper Money: Civil War Currency From the South (12th Edition) by George S. Cuhaj & William Brandimore