Description

OBSOLETE CURRENCY….St. Joseph, FL- Commercial Bank of Florida at Bank of the United States $5 Post Note Apr. 1, 1847 G56 Benice B4B PMG About Uncirculated 55 EPQ.  The bank was originally organized in Apalachicola in 1833 by the territorial legislature over the governor’s veto and also operated an unauthorized branch in St. Joseph around 1836-37. This note was a red flag regarding the bank’s financial footings. It was a post note payable three months after date at the Bank of the United States in Philadelphia over 1000 miles away. The persons who filled in this falsely completed note had little knowledge of either the bank or history as it is dated 1847, almost a decade after the failure of both banks with incorrect names for the cashier and president. However, this clumsy attempt at fraud is believed to have been attempted around the date indicated. Fraud is also suggested by the fact that the note’s layout somewhat resembles that of Bank of the United States notes, with portraits on all four corners and the name of that institution prominently featured on this note.