NEWS!

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The third edition was officially published October 25. The book is ready for shipment.

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German Glossary added. This page lists the most common terms you will find in German language catalogs and price lists to describe collectible railroad certificates.

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Ideally, I would like to learn the name of every legitimate railroad company that every existed on the North American continent. Please help if you know of any companies not already listed in the database on this site.

However, before contributing new names, you might check out this page about deceptive company names. Many company names sound like railroad companies, but were really model railroads, bus companies, shipping companies, or others kinds of non-railroad companies.

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Questions arise continually about identifying specimens and proofs.

Whereas proof coins are specially manufactured coins, proof certificates are the exact opposite. Proofs are merely test impressions of vignettes and certificates plates made prior to regular certificate production.

Specimen certificates, on the other hand, are identical in every way to regularly-issued certificates. I have a page that explains More than you EVER wanted to know about Specimens and Proofs.

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Million dollar bills. These are fantasy notes. Some were printed by American Bank Note Company and are such high quality that they confuse people.

MILLION DOLLAR BILLS CANNOT BE REDEEMED for $1,000,000.

They have no relationship to stocks and bonds, but many people still ask me to explain more. Threfore, I created a special page about million dollar bills.

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COUPONS. Do individual coupons or sheets of coupons have value? In my opinion,

      NO !!!

Some collectors will disagree. I ask them to understand that I am concerned very much about intentional deception!

We are seeing an increasing number bond coupons offered for sale on eBay that seem to be INTENTIONALLY TRYING TO DECEIVE UNSUSPECTING BEGINNERS!!!!. Please see my longer discussion of this subject in my Letter About Coupons.

Some sellers have photographed single coupons to make them look like obsolete currency. They have promoted them as such on eBay. Unfortunately, a few have sold. A few unfortunate collectors have been tricked into paying more for coupons than they would pay for entire bonds. I can only imagine their bitter disappointment when they received their winnings only to discover they bought tiny, worthless bond coupons. Usually without return piveleges.

It is my unyielding opinion that selling coupons represents a serious problem of deception. Passing off coupons as obsolete currency risks damaging the credibility of our hobby. It risks damaging rare and potentially valuable collectible bonds. I really wish eBay would address the problem, but history suggests it won't. EBay leaves it up to collectors to turn their backs on coupon sellers and collect real certificates instead.

Yes, I understand...

• SOME coupons are genuinely rare.
• SOME eBay offerings originate from innocent amateurs who actually think coupons have value.
• SOME coupons might represent the only tangible evidence that some bonds ever existed.
• SOME rare coupons might have genuine collectible value.

Okay. Let me ask you whether YOU think a few cents or dollars is worth the risk of deceiving beginners? Is it worth hurting the hobby just to peddle bits of paper that someone clips from bonds that can be purchased any day of the week for $10 to $20?

Finally, I want to know why anyone would buy a coupon as a collectible when they can BUY THE REAL BOND FROM WHICH IT CAME? It just does not make sense to me. Neither does it make sense to list any of those sellers on my dealers page. Don't go looking there.

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Imprinted Revenues - Many collectors are fond of imprinted revenue stamps that appear on financial documents from the 1860s and 1870s.

Please see my identification guide to imprinted revenues compiled with the help of revenue specialist Eric Jackson. At his suggestion, I have added large images to show what the revenues look like on document.

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At left is an image of the "The Express Train" on a print produced by Currier & Ives. Nathaniel Currier engraved this scene in the early 1850s and some version of it appears on over 60 stocks and bonds, not to mention hundreds of varieties of obsolete currency.

I do not collect Currier and Ives' lithographs, but I have collected images of their the rail-related lithographs on a page titled Currier & Ives collection.

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TIMELINE. I have compiled a TIMELINEfor those interested in events that happened during the eras of their certificates. This feature is intended to help collectors understand the events that affected the development of the railroad industry.

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CATALOG NUMBERS. Discover how I create catalog numbers.

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SELLING? Don't know where to start? Should you sell through online auctions? Or through dealers?

• Contact dealers listed on my dealers page.
• Read about pricing .
• Read hints to sellers .

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There are currently over 600 pages in this site and I add new pages frequently. My goal is to give collectors as much information as I possibly can in as many different areas as they want.

In return, I ask two things from collectors.

First, tell me of ANY errors you find anywhere on this site. If you can't find errors, you're not trying!

Secondly, visit my MYSTERIES page and see if you can help.

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Before you send copies of certificates, check How to Send Images. Save yourself some effort by learning what kinds of images and information help this project the most.