General Order. Letterpress broadside. Charleston, Virginia, 24 September 1862. 9 3/4 x 13 in. Signed in type by Maj. General William W. Loring and Chief of Staff H. Fitzhugh. Parrish & Willingham 1517.

A Confederate broadside issued by Confederate Major General William Loring (1818-1886) from Charleston (present-day West Virginia) in order to quell rumors of Confederate insolvency and reiterate that Confederate notes are secure and convertible to 8% bonds. 

This broadside advised and directed the citizens of Western Virginia that; "The money issued by the Confederate Government is secure, and is receivable in payment of public dues, and convertible into 8 per cent bonds. Citizens owe it to the country to receive it in trade; and it will therefore be regarded as good in payment for supplies purchased for the army. Persons engaged in trade are invited to resume their business and open their stores."

Issued on 24 September 1862, shortly after the conclusion of the Kanawha Valley Campaign of 1862 and just 11 days after the Battle of Charleston, in which Loring and the Confederate forces had successfully reoccupied the city after it had been in Union hands since very early in the war. This order was issued as a result of the campaign, extolling the citizens to get back to their businesses and informing them that Confederate dollars were still the legal tender. Many in the area were ardent Unionists who would have been naturally skeptical of accepting Confederate currency or uninterested in business dealings with the rebels.

The Confederate success in the Kanawha Valley campaign was overshadowed by the Army of Northern Virginia’s retreat to Virginia after the Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, Maryland. Without local support, Loring did not attempt to defend their occupation just five weeks later when they received news that Union troops were approaching.

[Civil War, Union, Confederate] [Broadsides, Ephemera, Printing, Posters, Handbills, Documents, Newspapers]

This broadside is in very good condition. There is a small tape repair to the bottom right corner as well as two small holes in the upper corners from where this order was posted to a building, wall etc.