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An old-style currency note from the City of New Orleans, valued at one dollar. It features images of two ships, elaborate designs, and portraits of women. The note is dated January 1, 1863, with decorative borders and numerals 49 120.

Municipal Currency in New Orleans

Money, Money, Money!
Money and Why There Was Never Enough
Banking in the Antebellum South
Banking and the Civil War
Greenback Revolution

Between 1836 and 1852 the city of New Orleans was divided into three semiautonomous municipalities united under a single mayor. Each municipality had its own council, police force, service providers, tax-collection entity, and note-issuing bank. Below are examples of currency from all three municipalities: the First (present-day French Quarter and Tremé), Second (present-day Central Business, Warehouse, and Lower Garden Districts), and Third (present-day Marigny and Bywater neighborhoods).

A vintage 1849 map titled Normans Plan of New Orleans & Environs, showcasing detailed street layouts, ward numbers, notable areas, and the Mississippi River flowing through the city.
Norman’s Plan of New Orleans and Environs, circa 1849, engraving by Shields and Hammond, engraver, and Benjamin Moore Norman, publisher. HNOC, gift of Boyd Cruise, 1952.29
An antique currency note from the City of New Orleans, labeled Municipality No. One. It features ornate illustrations, including a classical scene and a man in 19th-century attire, with the denomination 20 prominently displayed.
City of New Orleans, First Municipality, twenty-dollar note, May 25, 1842, engraving by Freeman Rawdon, draftsman, and Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson, printer (New Orleans). HNOC, 1952.27.1
An old New Orleans currency note with the number 50 on each corner. It features illustrations of allegorical figures, including a woman seated on a boat and another standing. Text indicates it is from Municipality No. One and dated May 23, 1837.
City of New Orleans, First Municipality, fifty-dollar note, May 25, 1842, engraving by Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson (New Orleans). HNOC, 1952.27.4
An old 100-dollar note from the City of New Orleans with intricate designs. It features a man on horseback, a standing man on the left, and a woman draped in cloth on the right. The text reads Municipality No. One, New Orleans.
City of New Orleans, First Municipality, one-hundred-dollar note, May 25, 1842, engraving by Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson (New Orleans). HNOC, 1952.27.5
A vintage 12.5 cent currency note from the Second Municipality of New Orleans, featuring two steamboats and ornate designs. The note is dated January 1, 1839.
City of New Orleans, Second Municipality, twelve-and-a-half-cent note, December 1, 1839, engraving by Draper, Toppan, Longacre, and Company (Philadelphia or New York). HNOC, 1952.27.11
A vintage $2 banknote from the Second Municipality of New Orleans features a woman seated with a shield and a steamship in the background. It includes ornate borders, bilingual text in English and French, and handwritten signatures.
City of New Orleans, Second Municipality, two-dollar note, December 1, 1839, engraving by Draper, Toppan, Longacre, and Company (Philadelphia or New York). HNOC, 1952.27.15
An old $50 treasury note from New Orleans, featuring ornate typography and a detailed illustration of a pelican feeding its young. The note includes signatures and the date August 14, 1878.
City of New Orleans, Second Municipality, fifty-dollar note, August 14, 1843, engraving by Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson (New Orleans). HNOC, 1952.27.24
An old U.S. Treasury Note for twenty dollars, dated October 4, 1863. The note features intricate designs, the text Municipality No. Two, and signatures at the bottom. Prominent numbers 20 appear in each corner.
City of New Orleans, Second Municipality, twenty-dollar note, October 4, 1843, engraving by Rawdon, Wright, Hatch, and Edson (New Orleans). HNOC, 1952.27.23
A worn and faded three-dollar banknote from New Orleans featuring intricate designs and text. The note displays Municipality No. 3 and Tres Dollars along with decorative elements and a signature.
City of New Orleans, Third Municipality, three-dollar note, 1840s, engraving by John V. Childs (New Orleans). HNOC, 1989.59.2
Chapter 10: Banking and the Civil War