Massachusetts, 20 Shillings, 1690

Grade Range: K-12
Resource Type(s): Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted: 6/10/2009

Called upon by the British government to help fight the French in Canada in 1689, Massachusetts authorities were hard-put to comply, because official money was unavailable. The Hull/Sanderson mint, which had created Pine Tree Shillings and other coins, had been closed on Crown orders years before, and all coinage was now in extremely short supply.

Then someone had an idea: Why not issue paper certificates to pay for the supplies and troops that Massachusetts was expected to contribute?...