Republic of Texas $20.00 (twenty dollars) ''Redback'' note

Title

Republic of Texas $20.00 (twenty dollars) ''Redback'' note

Description

This 'redback' note was issued in Austin by the Republic of Texas. Redbacks were issued from late 1839 until 1842. The most prolific issue of Texas money, redbacks were reissued and stamped as such, thus the total number issued is not known. Redbacks were named for the red ink used on their versos. A vignette of a Native American man standing over a dead bear appears in the upper-left corner of the note. The number '20' is printed beneath this vignette. A vignette of Liberty and a Native American man is printed towards the upper-right center of the note. Liberty is holding a liberty pole and cap in her right hand and is leaning against a shield bearing the flag of Texas; the Native American man is leaning against the other side of the shield. The number '20' is printed in decorative cartouches on either side of the vignette. A vignette of Wisdom is printed in the lower-right corner of the note. She is wearing a helmet, holding a weapon, and resting a foot upon a dead foe. The abbreviation 'No.' appears towards the upper center of the note; the number '2811' is handwritten adjacent to it. The plate designation 'A' appears under the note number. A seal of the Republic of Texas appears along the lower-center edge of the note. The month, day, and last two digits of the years are handwritten; the first two digits of the year, 18, are printed. The following two imprints appear along the bottom edge of the note: 'Rawdon, Wright, Hatch & Edson, New Orleans' and 'Rawdon, Wright & Hatch, New-York.' The note is signed on the recto by James Harper Starr, Secretary of the Treasury, and Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, President. Starr, a Connecticut native, was a physician, secretary of the treasury during the Republic, president of the General Land Office's board of land commissioners, land agent, and later the founder of one of the first banks in Texas (TSHA). Lamar was a soldier, the second president of the Republic, a representative of Nueces and San Patricio counties in the Second Texas Legislature, and the United States minister to Nicaragua and Costa Rica beginning in 1857 (TSHA). Two ornate designs printed in red ink comprise the left and right borders of the note's verso; a five-pointed star and the letters of the word 'Texas' are printed in red ink in-between the two designs. CR: A-6.

Creator

Republic of Texas

Source

Rowe-Barr Collection of Texas Currency

Date

July 10, 1839

Rights

Please cite DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University as the source of this file. A high-resolution version of this file may be obtained for a fee. For details, see the https://www.smu.edu/libraries/degolyer/research/permissions web page. For more information, contact degolyer@smu.edu.

Format

Paper Currency

Language

English

Type

Still Image

Identifier

RCN 26.04

Files

tbn_1272_large.jpg

Citation

Republic of Texas, “Republic of Texas $20.00 (twenty dollars) ''Redback'' note,” DeGolyer Library Exhibits, accessed March 29, 2024, https://degolyer.omeka.net/items/show/474.