1863 Raleigh & Gaston Rail-Road Company Stock Certificate – Confederate Issue

Description

1863 Raleigh & Gaston Rail-Road Company Stock Certificate – Confederate Issue
Offered for your consideration is a partly-printed certificate recording the sale of one share in a Confederate railroad in mid-1863. The principal vignette depicts a period steam locomotive and tender, with a box car and three passenger cars behind. Smoke billows from the engine’s stack, as it does from a tall chimney in the background (undoubtedly representing a factory of some type). A small sailboat can be seen on a body of water behind the train, with a mountain just visible in the distance. Immediately below this scene, printed in large letters is “
Raleigh and Gaston Rail-Road Company
”, followed by the financial obligation. This states that “
THIS CERTIFIES, that
Jos. B. Batchelor is
entitled to
one ------
Shares of ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS each, of the Capital Stock of the RALEIGH & GASTON RAIL-ROAD CO. transferable on the Books of the said Company by
him
or
his
Attorney, on the surrender of this Certificate.
”. In conclusion, the reader is instructed to “
Witness, the Seal of the Raleigh and Gaston Rail Road Company, this
10
th
day of
June
18
63
”. The signatures of “
W J Hawkins
” (William Joseph Hawkins) as “
President
” and “
W. W. Vass
” (William Worrell Vass) as “
Treasurer
” add validation to the transaction. The left end of the certificate is dominated by a vignette depicting George Washington mounted on a horse, presented in an oval, with company information above and below. A red overprint stating “
CAPITAL STOCK INCREASED
/
TO
/
,500,000
” partially obscures the vignette and printing. An embossed company seal can be discerned between the signatures and the vignettes at left, though this is quite weak. The entire front is enclosed by a rectangular border composed of several geometric designs. This certificate was printed by “
Hosford & Co. 35 Wall St. N. Y.
”, a fact verified by their imprint at the bottom center (these certificates were certainly printed before the outbreak of the Civil War, since it would have undoubtedly been considered traitorous to produce it after the fighting began). A partly-printed, transfer form, un-accomplished, appears on the verso. A great piece of history associated with this important Confederate railroad. Worthy of inclusion in any Civil War or railroad history collection.
Raleigh and Gaston Railroad
- Approval for the Raleigh & Gaston was obtained on December 31, 1835, and construction was begun the following year. The 86-mile road was opened in April, 1840, but almost immediately faced financial difficulties. The line received state support to supplement its private funding in the early 1840's. but even this was not sufficient to prevent foreclosure in 1845. At the subsequent sale, North Carolina Governor William A. Graham had the state purchase all of the property and assets of the company. The state continued to operate the railroad until it was reorganized in 1851-52, though they retained majority stock ownership even after reorganization. During the Civil War, this railroad served the Confederacy as an important link in the Charlotte-Raleigh-Petersburg-Richmond supply line. The Raleigh & Gaston merged with the Seaboard Airline Railroad in 1900, eventually becoming part of CSX Transportation.
This historic document measures approximately 6¼ x 9⅝ inches and exhibits significant folds and wrinkles associated with normal period use and subsequent storage. Light toning is present across the entire surface, imparting an overall off-white to beige hue to the document. This toning is slightly darker at the edges, particularly so at the left. The contrast on the document is reasonably sharp and bold (the date and Vass’ signature are slightly faded), with the red overprint at left being darker than frequently encountered. Ink corrosion is noted at all of the manuscript additions, though the paper is mostly intact at this time (there are, however, a few small holes caused by the corrosion). The margins are not uniform in size, with the right being the only one with any significant selvage present. Three "+" punch cancellations appear atop the signatures and date, with some paper loss noted at the points of contact. Several pinholes can be seen when this piece is held to the light, though these would be virtually undetectable if this piece were framed with a photograph of a period locomotive or Confederate 0.00 note. A wonderful opportunity to add one of these historic documents to your collection.
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If you have any questions regarding this item, please ask before purchasing.
Buy or Bid with Confidence – American Coins & Collectibles President Richie Self has worked 6 years as a paper money grader/authenticator. He has contributed to numerous reference books within the industry, as well as being a co-author of “The Comprehensive Catalog and History of Confederate Bonds, 2
nd
Edition” with Douglas B. Ball, Ph.D., Henry F. Simmons, M.D., Ph.D. and James R. Desabaye. Mr. Self is a life member of the American Numismatic Association, the Society of Paper Money Collectors, as well as numerous regional numismatic associations. He is an authorized submitter to NGC, PCGS, and PMG, a diamond founding member of Coin Dealers Helping Coin Dealers and a supporter of the Industry Council for Tangible Assets. American Coins and Collectibles can be found at many of the state and local coin shows.
American Coins and Collectibles
Shreveport, LA