The E-Sylum:  Volume 7, Number 1, January 4, 2004, Article 18

BANK NOTE RESEARCH

Responding to the comments about researching bank
note company history, Ron Benice writes: ""Antecedents
of the American Bank Note Company of 1858" by Foster
Wild Rice first appeared in "The Essay-Proof Journal" vol.
18, nos. 71 and 72 (1961), and later re-appeared as an
undated 25-page monograph."

Dave Bowers writes: "I enjoyed the feedback on my
comments concerning my compiling data concerning bank note
engravers and firms. I have and use regularly Gene Hessler's
book on the subject, and also have read Foster Wild Rice's
material (in the Essay-Proof Journal, essentially forming the
foundation for the material in the later Griffith history of the
American Bank Note Co.).

While I may not have ALL of the standard references on
American engravers of bank notes, if there are any I lack,
I am not aware of them. However, I am always learning, and,
often, I find information in out-of-the-way places such as on
data for early printers and publishers.

My comment earlier, which seems to have struck a responsive
chord with, for example, David Gladfelter (who has also been
keeping such information), is that the vast majority of standard
references copy each other--and if there is an error in one,
such as the misspelling of Waterman Lily Ormsby's middle
name as "Lilly," it is copied and recopied--not by everyone,
but by most. And, if someone's bio landed in Appleton's
Cyclopedia, then that was usually copied with not much else
done. That said, what is in print serves as a superb foundation
and jumping-off spot for something a bit more accurate and
with new information.

Whether I will do anything in print with the information I do
not know, and David Gladfelter said something similar
concerning his data--but I find it interesting to compile."

[If I were a betting man, I'd never bet against Dave Bowers
being familiar with any published work on U.S. numismatics.
Anywhere. Ever. But it's always worth mentioning possible
sources which may not be familiar to other readers. Along
the same lines I would mention "Ten Decades Ago 1840-1850
A Study of the Work of Rawdon, Wright, Hatch and Edson of
New York City" by Winthrop S. Boggs, published in 1949 by
the American Philatelic Society. Any item published outside the
mainstream numismatic channels can be extremely useful - these
are the sort of gems I love to sniff out. -Editor]

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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