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UNITED STATES, New York, North River Bank, $20 note, 1850s.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Coins: Shipwreck Coins Start Price:1,200.00 USD Estimated At:1,500.00 - 2,250.00 USD
UNITED STATES, New York, North River Bank, $20 note, 1850s.
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This item SOLD at 2025 Nov 13 @ 22:33UTC-05:00 : EST/CDT
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UNITED STATES, New York, North River Bank, $20 note, 1850s. Haxby-NYG50c. Recovered from Purser Hull’s safe aboard the S.S. Central America in 2014; professionally conserved in 2018. This exceedingly rare $20 note from the North River Bank is one of only two known examples recovered from Purser Hull’s safe, part of a group of eleven New York banknotes. Notably, Haxby states “Surviving example not confirmed,” underscoring the rarity of this issue. These notes were likely used to purchase passage dockside for the ill-fated southbound voyage of the S.S. Central America. Once aboard, the notes would have been secured in the purser’s safe, as they held minimal or no monetary value at intermediate ports such as Havana or Aspinwall. Their presence in the safe indicates they were intended for use upon return to New York. Pedigreed to the Holabird SS Central America Shipwreck Artifacts auction (December 2022), lot 1259 with original certificate. Recovered from: S.S. Central America, sunk in 1857 off North Carolina