posted 01-21-2009 08:54 PM            

On 7/23/1745, Alice Robinson, wife of Joseph Robinson of Killingly, in Windham County, Connecticut, passed a counterfeit note to Joshua Dean, GOLDSMITH of Providence Rhode Island. The counterfeit note was a 20 Shilling note of Rhode Island emission. Nothing else is known of this case.

From 1748-1756, Owen Sullivan, ENGRAVER and GOLDSMITH, was a notorious colonial counterfeiter. He was also known by these other names, James Shiffel, Benjamin Parlon, John Pierson, John Livingston and John Brown. He made the copper plates of the £16 Rhode Island note. Sullivan was from Boston and he was in trouble there and moved his operation to Rhode Island. Sullivan was arrested in Providence, Rhode Island for passing counterfeit Rhode Island £16 notes, using the alias of John Pierson. He confessed, pled guilty and was sentenced to the pillory, have both of his ears cropped, have both of his cheeks branded with a “C”, spend a month in prison, pay costs and forfeit his entire estate. When he was released, he moved his operation to New York, where he was arrested again and was sentenced to death. He was hung on May 8th, 1756. There is a woodcut of his hanging in the American Antiquarian Society.

In 1752, Zephaniah Stephens, passed a counterfeit £16 Rhode Island note to Jonathon Otis, GOLDSMITH, of Newport, Rhode Island. Stephens was arrested and released on bail and fled to Connecticut. He was arrested and admitted his guilt but nothing is known of his punishment.

Samuel Casey, SILVERSMITH of Rhode Island, nicknamed “Silver Sam”, was apprenticed to Jacob Hurd, SILVERSMITH of Boston. He was in partnership with his brother, Gideon Casey, SILVERSMITH, for 10 years. Samuel used a die made for counterfeiting the 8 Reale pieces of Charles III. He also counterfeited Half Joe’s and Moidores. In 1754 Samuel Casey was brought in for counterfeiting but for some reason he was not prosecuted but in 1770 after he had moved to Little Rest, his house was raided and the authorities found a press, dies and coining apparatus on his property. Casey was arrested and found Guilty and sentenced to death. Some friends of his broke him out of Gaol before he was to be hung and he escaped. His wife got him a full pardon in 1779 but he never returned and nothing else is known about him.

In 1752 Gideon Casey, SILVERSMITH of Rhode Island and younger brother of Samuel, was arrested in Philadelphia for passing counterfeit Doubloons. He was fined £50 and released. Gideon was also brought in for counterfeiting in Rhode Island in 1754 but was not prosecuted. In 1768, he was still counterfeiting and heard the authorities were looking for him, so he fled on a boat to Connecticut. While in Connecticut, he was passing more counterfeit money and heard that the authorities were looking for him, so he fled to New York. In New York the authorities found him on a ship getting ready to sail to North Carolina and he was arrested. On the boat the authorities found tools for making counterfeit dollars dated 1763 and 1764, bogus NY bills and plates for making North Carolina Currency. Gideon, somehow was acquitted, released and then he vanished.

In 1754, William Reynolds, SILVERSMITH, of Exeter, Rhode Island was approached by Henry Reynolds and John Rathbone, to make plates for Imitating bills. They wanted plates made for the 40 shilling, 10 shilling, 20 shilling and the 2 shilling 6 pence Rhode Island bills and also plates made for the 6 shilling and 2 shilling 6 pence New Hampshire bills. The 3 men were arrested and William was not punished because he was enticed by Henry Reynolds and John Rathbone to make the plates. William was later part of Samuel Casey’s gang and was arrested for counterfeiting in 1770 and was found guilty. He had his ears cropped and was branded in front of a large crowd of 3,000 on October 26th, 1770.

This topic continues in Colorful Colonial Makers Part IV