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Artistry Culture & In Numismatics ~ Maryland

One Shilling 1/- Remainder 1733

The arms of Maryland from a One Shilling note printed in 1733. The Latin legend on the note Crecite et Multiplicani translates to increase and multiply.

Maryland issued it's first paper money in 1733, and it had a curious reason for issuing it - each taxable person in Maryland who burned 150lbs of tobacco to prevent the depressing of the tobacco price was paid 30/-. The notes in seven denominations from 1/- to 20/- were authorised by the Commissioners of the Loan Office and backed with a purchase of Bank of England stock. These notes were intended to be issued until 29th September 1764, after which they were retired. The plates for the notes were engraved in England, and the notes were printed on fine woven and watermarked paper that was made in England also and bore "Maryland" in the watermark.

These notes are long horizontal notes, and the image above has had to be reduced to permit it to easily be viewed. They were printed in plates of five notes each, a curious feature of the notes is that in the lower left center where the denomination is there are stars denoting the plate position of the note - this note having four stars was the fourth note on the plate. These notes having been printed in large quantities were used for the 1733 issue, then unused sheets were used again for a 1740 and a final 1751 issue. Because of the quantities printed for each denomination they were stored in archives for a long time - becoming redundant with the 1756 note issue that was printed by Jonas Green of Annapolis. Subsequently a small quantity of them have been liberated from archives in Maryland and now represent the earliest paper money that is readily available for most collectors.

The indent portion of the note, like many early banknotes a portion of the note was kept in an account book, and the note was cut out by hand using a sharp blade usually with a wavy pattern to make the cut unique to the note as a guarantee that it was original.

Four Dollars 1767

Colonial era paper money was actually a lot more durable in it's paper strength than many later paper monies issued into the 19th century. More rag fibre was used in these notes from this era, so they were more durable but saw hard service and this note is an example of that. The paper money issues of 1733-1756 were made invalid after 1st April 1766. This 1767 issue was still secured on stock of the Bank of England, but unlike the previous issues this issue was denominated in dollars. This 1767 issue was similar to the 1756, and used the same punches and florals from the previous issued. The Annapolis printer, Jonas Green, was entrusted to print these paper monies but had to secure the punches and florals from the Loan Office Commission in Annapolis in order to print the notes. This $4 note was the equivalent to 18/-.

The signers of this note are Robert Couden, a prominent merchant and later mayor of Annapolis; and John Clapham, a sheriff of Anne Arundel county during 1770-72. The printer of the Maryland colonial era currency from 1756-1767 was Jonas Green who was descended from a long lineage of printers that hailed originally from Massachusetts-Bay. Jonas relocated to Annapolis in 1738 and became the colony's first public printer and printed all official documents and thence paper money. His demise in 1767 would initiate an extraordinary for the time change of events for the family business.

2/3rds Dollar 1774

Maryland has a very early colonial history, Cecil Calvert - Lord Baltimore was granted the patent to settle the area that would become Maryland in 1634. The Lord Baltimore was a practicing Catholic and was seeking refuge from the religious intolerance in England. When the patent for the Maryland colony was granted, Catholicism was granted precedence, but then religious intolerance in neighbouring Virginia spilled over into Maryland and eventually only Protestantism was legal - a factor that remained law until after the American Revolution. So for a brief period in early American history a colony had set a precedent that only much later would catch on in the country as a whole - separation of church and state.

Maryland issued it's first paper money by act of Assembly in 1733, the notes were denominated in £SD which was the recognised currency of the American colonies. Curiously though, different colonial paper monies from different colonies traded at different rates vs one another - so much so that exchange rates had to be published and some colonies money was worth more than others. Maryland issued paper money in £SD tenor until the 1756. By 1767, the Assembly of Maryland recognised that Spanish milled dollars were becoming the predominate currency and elected to issue the new issue of paper money in dollars instead of £SD tenor but referenced the corresponding value in the old currency for clarity. So this $2/3rds of a dollar note was correspondent to 3/- in £SD.

William Eddis signed the 1774 issues of paper money from Maryland. He had been born in England ca. 1745 and emigrated to America in 1769 and was appointed surveyor of customs for the colony. Given his esteemed position within the colony, he was selected to be a signer of the paper money for the 1774 issue. But with the outbreak of hostilies betwixt Great Britain and her colonies, Eddis had been determined to be a staunch Tory. He was called to session and having refused to give bond was ordered to leave America - however he was allowed to retain his position in employ with the colony until April 1777 when he boarded a British man-of-war and returned to England.

Two Dollars 1774

The demise of Jonas Green in 1767 could have left the family printing business in Annapolis imperiled, however his wife, Anne Catherine Green would soon become one of those extraordinary figures in early American history. Anne Catherine Green was born as Anna Catharine Hoof, likely in the Netherlands and emigrated to American when she was young. She was married to Jonas Green in 1738, and would bear him an incredible fourteen children, six of whom would survive into adulthood. Heavily indebted but blessed with a working print shop, she took on her husband's business with the continuing publishing of the Maryland Gazette and of course all the official publications in the colony. Her steadfast determination to continue business as usual was soon rewarded with new contracts - in her own name, which for the 18th century was indeed quite uncommon. Her two sons William and Frederick would also work with her on printing contracts and were credited with her on the paper money printings.

This portrait of Anne Catherine Green is remarkable for many reasons, most notably that it was painted by Charles Wilsson Peale(1741-1827) and was one of the first portraits he painted. Anne Catherine Green would continue the printing business with her sons until her demise in 1775, however the business would continue to thrive until her grandson, Jonas Green died in 1839.

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