$50 Confederate States of America - Criswell 5 - 1861 dated Confederate Bond
Inv# CF1141 Bond
$50 Confederate Bond. CR-5. 3 rows of coupons remain.
The eleven Confederate States in the 1860 United States census had 297 towns and cities, home to 835,000 people. Among these, 162 towns and cities, with a population of 681,000, were at one point occupied by Union forces. Eleven towns and cities were destroyed or severely damaged by war action, including Atlanta (with an 1860 population of 9,600), Charleston, Columbia, and Richmond (with prewar populations of 40,500, 8,100, and 37,900, respectively). These eleven towns and cities collectively housed 115,900 people in the 1860 census, representing approximately 14 percent of the urban South. Historians have not estimated the actual population of these towns and cities when Union forces arrived. The number of people (as of 1860) residing in the destroyed towns constituted just over 1 percent of the Confederacy’s 1860 population. Moreover, 45 court houses were burned out of the 830 that existed.
The South’s agricultural sector was not highly mechanized. The value of farm implements and machinery in the 1860 Census was $81 million. However, by 1870, this value had declined by 40 percent, resulting in a mere $48 million. Many old tools had become unusable due to heavy use, and new tools were rarely available, making repairs extremely challenging.
The economic losses had a profound impact on everyone. Most banks and insurance companies had failed, and Confederate currency and bonds were rendered worthless. The billions of dollars invested in slaves were lost, and most debts were left unresolved. While most farms remained intact, they had lost their horses, mules, and cattle. Paskoff’s analysis suggests that the loss of farm infrastructure was comparable regardless of whether fighting had taken place nearby. The loss of infrastructure and productive capacity left rural widows throughout the region facing not only the absence of able-bodied men but also a depleted supply of material resources. During the four years of warfare, disruption, and blockades, the South depleted approximately half of its capital stock.
A bond is a document of title for a loan. Bonds are issued, not only by businesses, but also by national, state or city governments, or other public bodies, or sometimes by individuals. Bonds are a loan to the company or other body. They are normally repayable within a stated period of time. Bonds earn interest at a fixed rate, which must usually be paid by the undertaking regardless of its financial results. A bondholder is a creditor of the undertaking.
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