Catalog
1 Dollars
| Issuer | St. Stephens Bank, St. Stephen |
|---|---|
| Year | 1863 |
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| Reference(s) | P#S1424 |
| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in black on cream paper and bears the bank title "ST. STEPHENS BANK" in bold letterpress across the upper register, beneath a Province of New Brunswick inscription. To the left, an oval intaglio portrait vignette of a bearded gentleman in formal dress is set within an ornate lathe-work border, with large numeral "1" counters at each upper corner. To the right, a detailed steam locomotive vignette is rendered in fine line engraving. The central field carries handwritten date "St. Stephen, May 1, 1863," the payee name Z. Chipman, and the manuscript obligation "Pay to bearer ONE DOLLAR in current funds of the United States," with printed signature lines for President and Cashier at the foot. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed entirely in green and displays a symmetrical lathe-work design composed of elaborate guilloche rosettes and scrollwork filling the full field. Three large circular engine-turned rosettes are positioned at left, centre, and right, framed by an ornate scalloped border. The denomination "ONE" is boldly overprinted in white serif letters at the centre of the composition. |
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| Comments |
St. Stephens Bank was a New Brunswick chartered bank operating in the border town of St. Stephen, directly across the St. Croix River from Calais, Maine. The economic entanglement between these two communities was so tight that American and Canadian currencies circulated interchangeably on both sides — a practice the local population reportedly defended well into the Confederation period despite official disapproval from both governments.
The American Bank Note Company imprint places production firmly in New York, which was routine for Maritime Canadian banks of this period lacking domestic security printers of comparable quality. This note was issued the same year the U.S. introduced the National Banking System, an irony not lost on a town where the border ran down the middle of daily commerce.