Confederate Currency

Three-dollar bills and other denominations of Confederate currency occupy glass cases at the Old Depot Museum.

Much of the currency issued from 1861 to 1865 was backed by cotton. The Confederate States of America expected to sell millions of bales to Europe, but a global cotton surplus in the early 1860s meant those bales sat in warehouses along the docks, and the notes became worthless. Some state currency was backed instead by bond sales or pledges and could be exchanged for Confederate notes or goods and services. But, by the end of the Civil War, they too were worthless. Another problem was that in addition to the Confederate government, some states, cities, banks and even businesses issued paper money, causing the currency to be easily counterfeited.