Connecticut pound
Encyclopedia
The pound was the currency of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

 until 1793. Initially, the British pound circulated along with foreign currencies. This was supplemented by local paper money from 1709. Although the local currency was denominated in pounds, shilling
Shilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...

s and pence
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...

, it was worth less than sterling, with 1 Connecticut shilling = 9 pence sterling. This rated the Spanish dollar
Spanish dollar
The Spanish dollar is a silver coin, of approximately 38 mm diameter, worth eight reales, that was minted in the Spanish Empire after a Spanish currency reform in 1497. Its purpose was to correspond to the German thaler...

 at 6 Connecticut shillings (compared to 4 shillings 6 pence sterling). The first issue of notes is known as the "Old Tenor" issue.

Due to over issue, the value of the Old Tenor notes fell relative to silver coins. In 1740, a second series of paper money was introduced, known as the "New Tenor" issue. These were worth 3½ times as much as the same denomination of Old Tenor notes. A further issue of 1755, known as "Lawful Money", replaced the Old and New Tenor issues at the rates of 1 Lawful Money shilling = 2.1 New Tenor shillings = 7.33 Old Tenor shillings.

The State of Connecticut issued Continental currency denominated in both £sd and Spanish dollars, with 1 Spanish dollar = 6 shillings. The Continental currency was replaced by the U.S. dollar at the rate of 1000 Continental dollars = 1 U.S. dollar.

External links

Louis Jordan. Colonial Currency. University of Notre Dame.
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