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Civil War-era coins made big headlines over the summer when a Kentucky man unearthed hundreds of lost gold coins and became about $2 million richer because of it. His discovery, made in a ...
The widespread use of the tokens was a result of the scarcity of government-issued cents during the Civil War. Civil War tokens became illegal after the United States Congress passed a law on April 22, 1864, prohibiting the issue of any one or two-cent coins, tokens or devices for use as currency. On June 8, 1864, an additional law was passed ...
It was not backed by hard assets, but simply by a promise to pay the bearer after the war, on the prospect of Southern victory and independence. As the Civil War progressed and victory for the South seemed less and less likely, its value declined. After the Confederacy's defeat, its money had no value, and individuals and banks lost large sums.
Before the Civil War, the United States used gold and silver coins as its official currency. Paper currency in the form of banknotes was issued by privately owned banks, the notes being redeemable for specie at the bank's office. Such notes had value only if the bank could be counted on to redeem them; if a bank failed, its notes became worthless.
Old coins are going for big bucks on eBay, and we found a few that you might just have lying around. Check out the slideshow above to discover if any of the coins you've collected could rake in ...
Delayed until the end of World War II, the Red Book was published in 1946, providing collectors even more historical information as well as retail values (prices collectors could expect to pay coin dealers to buy coins) instead of wholesale values. R. S. Yeoman served as editor of the Red Book and Blue Book until he retired in 1970.