Original Confederate Western & Atlantic Railroad currency, dated June 2,1862 (SOLD)

This is another nice piece being offered, it is a .50-cent note from the Western & Atlantic Railroad. The note is dated “June 2, 1862”, features a steam train, and is hand-signed by the railroad's treasurer and superintendent. The W & A was a prominent Southern railroad that played a crucial role during the Civil War, and printed currency for use as payment for its services.

The Western and Atlantic Railroad was a137-mile line between Atlanta and Chattanooga which was built between 1841– 1850 by the State of Georgia at a cost of almost five million dollars. Surveys for the line began in 1837, and the first train ran from Marthasville (Atlanta) to Marietta on December 23, 1842. The locomotive had to be hauled by wagon from Madison, which was at the time the western end of the Georgia Railroad. Regular service on the W&A did not begin until 1845.

By the time of the Civil War, the W&A had 46 wood burning locomotives, two of which were to become participants in the “Great Locomotive Chase” of April 1862. It played a major role in the Atlanta Campaign and its loss in 1864 was a serious blow to the Confederacy’s hopes of ultimate victory. Like many Southern railroads, the W&A suffered extensive damage during the war. This is a nice piece of Civil War and Railroad history and it comes in the plastic sleeve pictured.