NCJ Number
184048
Date Published
2000
Length
309 pages
Annotation
This book examines the prevalence of counterfeiting in colonial America and the difficulties the authorities had in tracking down the offenders.
Abstract
The author notes that in the thriving commercial centers of colonial America, merchants could be paid in Spanish doubloons, British pounds, or any of the currencies each colony produced. Such a diversity of monetary forms encouraged some citizens to try counterfeiting. In addition, the combination of a generally inefficient law enforcement system, the gradual proliferation of colonial issues to copy, and the reliance on private citizens to pay for prosecuting criminals made it difficult to capture, convict, or punish counterfeiters. In the early 18th century, counterfeiting in America entered a golden age that would last for approximately 150 years. This book profiles many of the individuals and organized gangs involved in counterfeiting, including members of the Dover Money Club and numerous women practitioners. One of the central themes of the book is that counterfeiting in colonial America was ubiquitous, transcending socioeconomic, ethnic, and gender lines. Counterfeiters had innumerable ways to practice the art, as the author describes in detail. The final chapter assesses counterfeiting during the Revolution, when the British government found it to be an effective means of undermining the fledgling national economy. A 21-item bibliography and a subject index