PMG-certified 1865 Note in the Spotlight at Stack's Bowers Sale

Paper Money Guaranty® (PMG®) has certified 29 of the top 30 lots of the Stack’s Bowers November 2019 sale of vintage US currency in Baltimore, including an extremely rare Civil War-era note. The auction concludes on Nov. 14.

The top lot is an 1865 $500 Interest Bearing Note, Fr. 212f, graded PMG 25 Very Fine. It has an estimate of $300,000 to $500,000 and a mysterious story.

This 1865 $500 Interest Bearing Note, Fr. 212f, is graded PMG 25 Very Fine. It has an estimate of $300,000 to $500,000 and a mysterious back story. Click image to enlarge.

The note had its serial number altered and the payee’s name removed after it was redeemed, apparently in an attempt to redeem it again. It also shows signs that Treasury Department officials discovered the plot, writing the correct serial number by hand on the note and punch-canceling it repeatedly.

On the back also is a hand-written note: “Writing has evidently been removed from the payee mark on this note SMC June 26/68.” This inscription likely was added by Spencer Clark, head of the National Currency Bureau at the time, according to the auction house.

The note, submitted to PMG through its CrossOver service, was part of the well-known numismatist Joel R. Anderson’s collection and is the only $500 note of its kind from 1865 in the PMG Population Report.

The auction also features a 1902 $10, Fr. 613, graded PMG 30 Very Fine with an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. The note is the only one known to exist that was issued by the Farmers National Bank of Kingfisher in the Oklahoma Territory. It has been held by the family of the man who organized the bank, which operated from 1903 to 1905.

Other PMG-graded highlights of the sale include:

• A 1928 $500 Gold Certificate, Fr. 2407, graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated. Estimate: $30,000 to $40,000.
• A 1918 $1,000 Federal Reserve Note - Philadelphia, Fr. 1133-C, graded PMG 30 Very Fine. Estimate: $25,000 to $35,000.
• An 1882 $5 First National Bank of Raton, Territory of New Mexico, Fr.533, graded PMG 50 About Uncirculated EPQ. Estimate: $20,000 to $30,000.
• An 1880 $50 Silver Certificate, Fr. 328, graded PMG 12 Fine. Estimate: $17,500 to $27,500.
• A 1928 Uncut Sheet of $1 Silver Certificates, Fr. 1601, graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated. Estimate $15,000 to $25,000.
• A 1995 $1 Federal Reserve Note - Dallas, Fr. 1922-K*, Serial No. 1, graded PMG 66 Gem Uncirculated EPQ. Estimate: $15,000 to $25,000.
• A 1929 uncut sheet of six $5 First National Bank of Loma Linda, California, Fr. 1800-2, graded PMG 55 About Uncirculated EPQ. Estimate: $15,000 to $25,000.
• An 1871 50 Cents Imperial Government of Norton I graded PMG 30 Very Fine. Estimate $15,000 to $25,000.
• A 1902 $10 First National Bank of Rosebud, Montana, Fr. 632, with Serial No. 1 graded PMG 64 Choice Uncirculated. Estimate: $15,000 to $25,000.
• A 1902 $50 First Nation Bank of Youngwood, Pennsylvania, Fr. 664, with Serial No. 6 graded PMG 20 Very Fine. Estimate: $15,000 to $25,000.
• A 1929 $5 First National Bank of Ketchikan, Alaska, Fr. 1800-1, graded PMG 40 Extremely Fine. Estimate: $12,500 to $17,500.
• A 1902 $10 First National Bank of Elsinore, California, Fr. 633, Serial No. 1 graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated. Estimate: $12,500 to $17,500.
• An 1882 uncut sheet of four $5 First National Bank of Shelbyville, Illinois, Fr. 474, graded PMG 35 Choice Very Fine. Estimate: $12,500 to $17,500.
• An 1882 $500 Gold Certificate, Fr. 1216, graded PMG 15 Choice Fine. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
• A 1902 $20 First National Bank of Venice, California, Fr. 654, graded PMG 20 Very Fine. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
• A 1902 $20 First National Bank of Farmington, New Mexico, Fr. 654, graded PMG 15 Choice Fine. Estimate: $10,000 to $15,000.
• An 1875 $2 Labrosse, Wisconsin, National Bank, Fr. 391, graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
• An 1858 $2 Deseret Currency Association, Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, graded PMG 35 Choice Very Fine. Estimate: $8,000 to $12,000.

All estimates are by the auction house.