THE CONFEDERATE MONTGOMERY NOTES

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V29 2026 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 29, Number 16, 2026, Article 26

Heritage published the following article in their latest Currency News email entitled Stories in Banknote Printing: The Inseparable Connections between the ABNCo., NBNCo., and SBNCo. by Caleb Audette. -Garrett

The T1 through T4 Confederate Treasury Notes, often referred to as the "Montgomery Notes," are well known by many Confederate enthusiasts as some of the most beautiful types produced. What may not be well known, however, is the story of the printers behind their creation. Crises of the era set in motion events which would lead to the founding of several engraving firms and the eventual production of some of the most iconic notes in American fiscal history.

As researcher Mark Coughlan affirms in his book Engravers and Printers of Confederate Paper Money, to understand the conditions which led to the printing of these beautiful pieces, one must travel back in time to the Panic of 1857. After this crisis, several prominent printing firms, including Rawdon, Wright, Hatch & Edson, Toppan, Carpenter & Co., Bald, Cousland & Co., and others, met and established the American Bank Note Co. in early 1858.

Disliking the inner workings of this new company, several skilled employees decided to break off from the main firm and form a competitor in late 1859 which they called the National Bank Note Co. Renowned individuals such as James Smillie quickly abandoned the ABNCo. and transitioned instead to the NBNCo.

Even before Civil War hostilities broke out on April 12, 1861, the newly formed Confederate States of America's government, temporarily located in Montgomery, AL, realized that it would require a form of nationwide banking so that its citizens could conduct business efficiently. The newly elected Confederate Secretary of the Treasury Christopher Gustavus Memminger, through respected banker intermediary Gazaway Bugg Lamar, negotiated a contract with the NBNCo. to print the recently founded country's first paper money.

Cyrus Durand, one of the earliest engravers of paper money in the nation, was indirectly essential to the actual printing process utilized to print the first four Confederate types. Durand began his career in Newark, NJ, as a silversmith in the early-to-mid-1810s. In the late 1810s to early 1820s, he began to dabble in the banknote engraving process and invented several machines which created straight and wavy lines, water lines utilized in vignettes, and plain ovals. These three machines were the first iterations of the geometric lathe which Cyrus is credited for inventing in the 1820s.

This same geometric lathe would make possible the engraving of complex green micro-letter patterns on the Montgomery Notes. Several vignettes now familiar to collectors of both Confederate and Obsolete notes were incorporated. In fact, all vignettes that appear on the Types 1 through 4 were employed on numerous Obsoletes, both Northern and Southern, in the antebellum and postwar eras, as well as during the war.

For example, this remarkable T1, which we are currently offering in our April 28-May 1, 2026, CSNS U.S. Currency Signature Auction, features portraits of states' rights advocate John C. Calhoun (left) and President Andrew Jackson (right). Calhoun's portrait also appeared on the Exchange Bank of Vermont $5 Obsolete, while Jackson's portrait can be observed on the Bank of Tennessee $10 Obsolete.

One vignette which captivates collectors in the Montgomery series is the vignette showcased at center on this incredibly vivid T2. Engraved by James Smillie, this illustration is entitled The Crossing. Interestingly, the depiction of Ceres at lower left was also featured on an elusive State of Florida $1 note which we are also offering in this same auction.

As for the ABNCo.'s fate, the firm continued their success well into the 20th century. While they did not directly print any notes for the Confederacy due to regulatory restrictions, their New Orleans branch, the Southern Bank Note Co., produced both the T5 $100 and T6 $50, the first two types to be emitted from the new Confederate capital of Richmond, VA, and the red orange overprinted T15, T19, T22, and T31 notes. We are offering each type in our upcoming Signature auction. Two examples appear below.

The extensive Confederate Treasury Note and Obsolete Note offering we present in our upcoming Signature auction highlights a tumultuous time in our nation's history, but the NBNCo. and SBNCo. sets specifically emphasize the early years of the war. The unique history of these two firms, coupled with the notes' aesthetically pleasing designs which connect with multiple Obsoletes of the period, should attract robust competition.