Catalog
25 Cents
| Issuer | Maryland State Colonization Society |
|---|---|
| Year | 1837 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Central oval vignette of a duck resting on water, surrounded by a simple engraved border, with denomination numeral "25" in oval cartouches at upper left and upper right. The vertical side panels carry the words "TWENTY-FIVE" and "CENTS" in letterpress. Two signature lines appear at the lower margin, designating the Governor of Maryland in Liberia and the President of the Maryland State Colonization Society. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | MARYLAND STATE COLONIZATION SOCIETY. Baltimore, November, 1837. 25 This note will be received for TWENTY-FIVE CENTS, at the Government Store, in Harper, Maryland in Liberia, Africa in payment for goods. Governor of Md. in Liberia. Pres't Md. State Col. Society. |
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| Comments |
The Maryland State Colonization Society was a private organization promoting the emigration of free Black Americans to the West African colony of Maryland in Liberia, established in 1834 as distinct from — and often at odds with — the American Colonization Society. This note was issued during a period when the Society was financing ships, land purchases, and colonial administration largely through private subscriptions and scrip rather than state appropriation.
Fractional paper currency from colonization societies is rare in any condition. The Society had no banking charter, which makes the legal basis for circulating this scrip in Baltimore a legitimate open question.