United States. 1899 Labor Exchange Note. Five Hundredths. Extremely Fine.
A fascinating, attractive example of an obscure scrip issue from the end of the 19th century.
The Labor Exchange Movement emerged from the economic ferment of the 1890s. A massive depression, regarded as the first industrial depression in U.S. history, put intense pressure on farmers and served as the catalyst for a wide range of reform movements and mutual aid organizations. The Labor Exchange was one such organization. Founded in Sedalia, Missouri in 1889, the Labor Exchange was the brainchild of Giovanni Battista De Bernardi (1831-1901), an Italian-born farmer who advocated for farmers' coorperatives in the 1870s and 1880s. At the Labor Exchange, surplus goods could be deposited in exchange for paper notes, or "labor checks" redeemable in goods or services. Though the first few years saw limited growth, Labor Exchanges began cropping up across the Midwest in the aftermath of the Crisis of 1893. Similar schemes, and the notes they produced, had been tried in England in the mid-19th century.
Different branches specialized in different types of products and services; a branch in New Philadelphia, Ohio operated a mine. Labor Exchange Notes gained some acceptance in individual towns and cities. Some separatist elements of the movement attempted to create Labor Exchange colonies.
By the turn of the cenutry, the national economy had stabilized and the Labor Exchanges gradually shut down. Similar projects would be revived with the onset of the Great Depression decades later.
In his 1981 article on the Labor Exchange Movement in the journal Communal Societies, H. Roger Grant estimates that at its height, the Labor Exchange Movement had some 15,000 members across more than 300 chapters. In 1896, there were some 6,000 members. A fascinating piece of labor and late-19th century economic history.
Serial number: 1132
FACE: Allegorical figure of justice holding scales and a sword, labeled "The day of Equity" at left, central vignette depcits the globe covered by farmers and workers. Obligation text reads: "BALANCE DUE BEARER IN LABOR OR THE PRODUCTS OF LABOR By LABOR EXCHANGE" "BRANCH 220 / CINCINNATI, OHIO. / 1899" appears in a box at left.
Text in small boxes at the top- and bottom-center reads "CAPITALIZATION OF LABOR" and "INDUSTRIAL LIBERTY"
BACK: Railroad scene, with an arch representing the "LEGAL TENDER TOLL GATE" labeled "PROGRESS, STOP!" breaking in front of a train lebaled "LABOR EXCHNAGE" and "PLENTY"
Condition
No condition report? Click below to request one.*Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact and Doyle New York shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. Please contact the specialist department to request further information or additional images that may be available.
A fascinating, attractive example of an obscure scrip issue from the end of the 19th century.
The Labor Exchange Movement emerged from the economic ferment of the 1890s. A massive depression, regarded as the first industrial depression in U.S. history, put intense pressure on farmers and served as the catalyst for a wide range of reform movements and mutual aid organizations. The Labor Exchange was one such organization. Founded in Sedalia, Missouri in 1889, the Labor Exchange was the brainchild of Giovanni Battista De Bernardi (1831-1901), an Italian-born farmer who advocated for farmers' coorperatives in the 1870s and 1880s. At the Labor Exchange, surplus goods could be deposited in exchange for paper notes, or "labor checks" redeemable in goods or services. Though the first few years saw limited growth, Labor Exchanges began cropping up across the Midwest in the aftermath of the Crisis of 1893. Similar schemes, and the notes they produced, had been tried in England in the mid-19th century.
Different branches specialized in different types of products and services; a branch in New Philadelphia, Ohio operated a mine. Labor Exchange Notes gained some acceptance in individual towns and cities. Some separatist elements of the movement attempted to create Labor Exchange colonies.
By the turn of the cenutry, the national economy had stabilized and the Labor Exchanges gradually shut down. Similar projects would be revived with the onset of the Great Depression decades later.
In his 1981 article on the Labor Exchange Movement in the journal Communal Societies, H. Roger Grant estimates that at its height, the Labor Exchange Movement had some 15,000 members across more than 300 chapters. In 1896, there were some 6,000 members. A fascinating piece of labor and late-19th century economic history.
Serial number: 1132
FACE: Allegorical figure of justice holding scales and a sword, labeled "The day of Equity" at left, central vignette depcits the globe covered by farmers and workers. Obligation text reads: "BALANCE DUE BEARER IN LABOR OR THE PRODUCTS OF LABOR By LABOR EXCHANGE" "BRANCH 220 / CINCINNATI, OHIO. / 1899" appears in a box at left.
Text in small boxes at the top- and bottom-center reads "CAPITALIZATION OF LABOR" and "INDUSTRIAL LIBERTY"
BACK: Railroad scene, with an arch representing the "LEGAL TENDER TOLL GATE" labeled "PROGRESS, STOP!" breaking in front of a train lebaled "LABOR EXCHNAGE" and "PLENTY"
Condition
No condition report? Click below to request one.*Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact and Doyle New York shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. Please contact the specialist department to request further information or additional images that may be available.
