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15 Cents 'Fractional Currency' - 3rd series
| Issuer | United States Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1865 |
| Type | Pattern or trial banknote |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in red on a light ground and carries two large denomination counters — each bearing the numeral '15' — set at the left and right margins within elaborate lathe-work guilloche roundels. The central field is enclosed in an ornate scalloped oval border interspersed with repeated '15' numerals and six-pointed stars, enclosing the full redemption legend in letterpress. |
| Reverse lettering | THIS NOTE IS EXCHANGEABLE FOR United States Notes BY THE ASSISTANT TREASURERS AND DESIGNATED DEPOSITARIES of the UNITED STATES IN SUMS NOT LESS THAN THREE DOLLARS. RECEIVABLE IN PAYMENT OF ALL DUES TO THE UNITED STATES LESS THAN FIVE DOLLARS except CUSTOMS. |
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| Comments |
Third Issue Fractional Currency emerged from a genuine wartime coin shortage — silver and copper disappeared from circulation almost immediately after 1861 as hoarding gripped the public. By the time this 15-cent denomination was printed, the emergency had technically passed, but fractional notes remained in use because retrieving and destroying them proved logistically difficult. The National Currency Bureau printed these in Washington under reasonably tight quality controls, and the series introduced fiber paper with embedded red and blue threads as an anti-counterfeiting measure — a direct response to the widespread photographic counterfeiting that had plagued the First and Second Issues.
The "spwmb" suffix in the Friedberg reference denotes fiber paper with pink fibers on the face and blue on the back — one of several paper varieties catalogued within this single series, which complicates census counts considerably.