I know that national bank notes are difficult to value, but I am interested in purchasing this bank note from a small town in Pennsylvania. It is being sold on ebay, and I was wondering if you thought that $230 was a good price for this note. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260859014515&category=3419&_trksid=p5197.c0.m619#ht_500wt_1287 Thanks for your help, Nick
Depends on how bad you want it. If it's a banknote that rarely comes up for sale then it's a fair price. Not a good price, but fair. I paid a bit for a note from a bank in Emporium, PA, but it's one of ten known pieces to survive, so I was willing to pay whatever they asked. There's just no real set price for many of the small town banknotes. You usually have to bear down and buy whenever they come along at any price. Guy
I completely agree with Coleguy. I've only see one national ban note from my small town for sale and it went for over $700 in average condition and it was also raw. I was willing to go over $500 just because i needed it but it didn't work out.
Generally a PA NBN TYPE 1 $10 in VG should only go for $60 or so, however I don't have any data for that particular bank on whether it's scarce or super rare.
I came across one right in my daughters backyard and I never new it existed. She lives in Batavia and I was auctioned in a town adjascent to it in November. The bank is long gone and has been converted into an antique store. I bought it and showed it to her. Her future in-law's ran a different antique store in the same town, and it was unkwown to them also. I would like to get some background about it, if anyone can help.
I too would love to find a source for this information? Can anyone provide us in the right direction?
The way I found out with mine was to look through Heritage auction records and read the descriptions provided. Aside from that you may have to consult an expert on the subject. Guy
Thank you. I have a couple from Saginaw Michigan. I'm sure there would be more know for Saginaw than a smaller town like the OP has described.
"Surviving" numbers would seem something impossible to know with any certainty, however, you can get a little idea by comparing certified notes' population reports from grading companies, PMG and PCGS Currency. This will tell you somewhat about the numbers existing in graded notes so far submitted and encapsulated. Books are your next best bet... Don C. Kelly's book National Banknotes is pretty much a collectors 'bible' on the subject of Nationals. You can also get some idea of how much was out there from an older book, The National Banknotes of 1929-1935 by Louis van Belkum (& Peter Huntoon). These books can divulge some numbers in terms of what was issued originally by each bank so far as was known when the books were published. The last title you can find used online, check individual sellers listings on Amazon.com Marketplace, Abebooks, and the like. There are web sites you can pick through too, like: Rare National Currency Antique Banknotes: National Bank Information Some specialty sites for specific FNBs exist too, for example: Birmingham, Michigan Arizona NB
Sorry for the delay in answering but CT notice emails are arriving in bunches many days apart. I paid $110 with the buyers' fee included. I felt it was a steal at the time. I have only found one sale in the Heritage archives for $287.00, and that was in the year 2003. They referred to it as a scarce note, but I have learned that description like that are meaningless. I did find out my original information about its location was for the Batavia National Bank, not the First National Bank of Batavia. It is now a Harris Bank. I think I will stop by and see if I can get any information directly.
