The New England Numismatic Association's official publication is NENA News. John Ferreri offered to share some articles with E-Sylum readers. Here's a token article that caught my eye - it's from the March 2021 issue by John himself, on the mysterious tower seen on Rhode Island paper money. Thanks!
-Editor
This 1831 $2 note of the Merchant’s Bank of Newport shows the
mysterious tower in Truro Park in the city of Newport, RI. This
was built on hilly land at one time owned by Benedict Arnold, the
great-grandfather of the Benedict of Revolutionary War fame and
disgrace. Notice the amount of intrusive brush that flows over the
stone sides, indicating that even in 1831, the date of the engraving,
this structure must have been quite old. The fact that it still stands
is a testament to the workmanship involved when it originally was
built. The note was engraved by Peter Maverick an outstanding
banknote engraver of his day and will show the uncluttered and
precise qualities of his work.
Collecting Obsolete Banknotes can sometimes turn into an archeological event as with the image of the Newport Tower
as shown on an 1831 issue of the Merchants Bank in Newport, Rhode Island . The banknote image available to this author
comes from an online source and while of mediocre quality is still
sharp enough to discern some of the finer points of the tower.
So, what is the tower? Good question! In the past it has
been called by various names and attributed to various peoples.
It is a sturdy structure made of uncut stone and mortar not unlike
the stone which may be found in the immediate area of Newport.
Today it rests in a small park surrounded by Pelham, Truro W. and
Mill Streets and Bellevue Ave. It is round, has eight legs and arches and seems to be missing a floor or two inside. There are niches
made in the inner wall that could be for floor joists or maybe for
the inner workings of a mill.
Two different pictures of the Newport Tower, one a painting
and the other, a modern photograph.
It seems that no written records of its architect and construction are known. Was it a windmill built by the elder Arnold or
could it be that the Vikings landed here in years past and constructed this tower with which to burn brush and signal to others off
shore on ships, of their whereabouts? Or, could it have been built
by some Chinese explorer who came ashore here to erect a tower,
similar in appearance to those made in China during the Song Dynasty in the 1840’s? Some believe that the Knights Templar had a
hand in its construction as they were master stone builders.
The most believable theory (to this author), would be that it
was designed and built by Peter Harrison, a widely known master
architect both in Newport and other areas of the Colonies in about
1750-1770. This time frame for the Tower has been confirmed
by carbon dating of the mortar substance found in its matrix. The
tower itself is 28 feet tall and while rough in appearance, is actually sturdy enough to have withstood almost 300 years of New
England hurricanes, tornadoes, ice events and bomb cyclones that
seem currently to be in vogue! It has witnessed the church marriage of at least one President (John Kennedy) and is a neighbor to
various late 1800’s industrialists’ mansions built high above Easton
Bay on the east shore of the town.
This counterfeit note dated 1804 and issued by the Rhode Island Union Bank
shows very poor workmanship, especially with the lettering. However this
note may show the one clue that proves the original purpose of the Newport
Tower!
Credit for this image goes to Stack’s Bowers Galleries. The image was previously shown in banknote form in Volume 5 of the Whitman Encyclopedia of Obsolete Paper Money.
So, what did he build? The vignette on this other Newport
banknote of the Rhode Island Union Bank printed in 1804 certainly
shows a structure that is unmistakably, a windmill. The note is
probably a counterfeit (there are no known genuine $3 bills like
this) but wouldn’t a counterfeit note have an almost exact resemblance to the genuine? And, with the abundance of wind coming
off the sea, a hill in Newport would be a natural place to build a
windmill!
The next time you visit little old Newport you might want
to stop at the Tower to see what exactly you think of it! If current
banknotes used in Newport could display scenery of local areas
what do you think would be shown on them, the Cliff Walk, Castle
Hill Lighthouse and the Tennis Hall of Fame? This is what makes
collecting U.S. Obsolete Paper Money so interesting. One never
knows what scenery will be found on these bills. Sometimes it is
up to the reader to identify it!
Historic structures, wartime battles, identifiable street
scenes, famous ships and historic moments are captured in the artists vignettes used on many of New England’s mid 1800’s paper
money issues. This note is a good example!
To learn more about collecting paper money or to inquire about membership
in the Currency Club of New England contact Kevin Lafond, P.O.Box 4724,
Porstmouth, NH 03802-4724 or kglafond@comcast.net, phone (603) 498-2042.
For more information on the New England Numismatic Association, see:
https://www.nenacoin.org/
Wayne Homren, Editor
The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization
promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.
To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor
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