Collection of 40 Checks Drawn on Whaling Banks, 1840s and 1850s. by Ephemera

may18.

Banks upon which these checks were drawn include the New Bedford Bank, Merchant's Bank, and Marine Bank, all of New Bedford. Most of the checks have vignette engravings of whaling scenes or ships in the left margin or at the top of the check, the most frequent being a wood engraving of a whale in its death flurry, signed in type by Charles Taber & Co. Most of the checks are drawn on the account of Andrew Hicks, a Westport ship owner, who owned at least ten whale ships between the 1830 and the 1880s. One of the most famous of these was the "Andrew Hicks," a 300 ton ship built in Fairhaven in 1867. She lasted until 1917. Recipients of these checks include Hicks himself, insurance companies, suppliers, and individuals - an interesting sidelight of whaling information. Old checks are common; those with whaling scenes less so. There's one being offered online now for $99. This lot of 40 checks