$50 and $100 Canal Bank - Pair of Notes - Louisiana Uncut Obsolete Sheet - Broken Bank Notes - Paper Money

Chartered in 1831 as the New Orleans Canal and Banking Company, this prominent “improvement bank” played a crucial role in financing major infrastructure projects in antebellum Louisiana. Its primary focus was the construction of the New Basin Canal, a six-mile waterway that connected the city’s American sector to Lake Pontchartrain. This monumental undertaking, though tragic, involved thousands of Irish immigrants who labored in grueling swamp conditions to dig the canal by hand. Sadly, many succumbed to yellow fever and cholera during its construction. Despite the human cost, the canal became a vital commercial artery for a century, facilitating the transportation of timber, seafood, and building materials into the growing city.

Over the decades, the bank underwent several mergers and eventually became known as the Canal Bank and Trust Company. By the late 1920s, it had grown into one of the largest financial institutions in the South, headquartered in a grand, Renaissance-style building on Baronne Street designed by architect Emile Weil. However, the institution faced challenges during the Great Depression and entered liquidation on March 1, 1933, following the National Bank Holiday. The National Bank of Commerce succeeded it, and its historic headquarters was later transformed into the Capital on Baronne apartments and event space. Today, while the New Basin Canal has been largely filled in and replaced by the Pontchartrain Expressway, the bank’s legacy continues to be a significant chapter in New Orleans’ economic and architectural history.