Sheheen catalogs South Carolina obsolete notes & scrip

  (from the July/August 2004 issue of Paper Money)

A life SPENT collecting and studying obsolete currency of his native state has enabled past SPMC President Austin M. Sheheen Jr. to completely revise and update his 1960 catalog with the release of his new 368-page South Carolina Obsolete Notes and Scrip.

Sheheen’s work is not only a comprehensive survey of his subject (state, bank, railroad, town, city, private, depression scrip, and miscellaneous notes), but a sumptuous one at that.  Printed on heavy 80-pound glossy paper, virtually every note (more than 1,000) is published in full color.

The book’s dapper author credits a brace of deceased and current collectors as well as the State’s Museum and Department of Archives and History for advancing his knowledge of this field.

The catalog includes basic information on the banks of issue, their officers, capitalization and dates of organization.  Rarities, note descriptions, printers’ imprints, as well as listings of counterfeit, spurious, altered and raised notes are detailed as well.  A very helpful index and a comprehensive set of running heads (folios) make navigating the book a breeze.  Certainly an excellent addition to the literature and highly recommended as a definitive listing.

This hardbound volume is priced at $50 (dealers inquiries invited) from its author at PO Box 428, Camden, S.C. 29020.  --Fred Reed