Fr. 831 (W-3030). 1918 $50 Federal Reserve Bank Note. St. Louis. PCGS Choice About New 58 PPQ.

Fr. 831 (W-3030). 1918 $50 Federal Reserve Bank Note. St. Louis. PCGS Choice About New 58 PPQ.，This is <em>the </em>"trophy note" denomination among Federal Reserve Bank Notes. The Anderson Collection example is among the finest known of this famous rarity. There are just 53 reported examples of this elusive design type. The $50 Federal Reserve Bank Notes of 1918 were only issued for the St. Louis district and they are a must-have for any collector seeking to complete a large-size type set. This example has been described as Choice Uncirculated over the course of several public offerings going back to at least 1970, and appears to be very close to an Uncirculated grade. Apparent through the holder are ample margins, boldly printed inks, and natural paper wave. Even, original overprint embossing is observed from the back of the note. This is the highest PPQ or EPQ designated note to appear at auction, in addition to being the highest PPQ designated note graded by PCGS.<p><p><em></em><p><strong>$50 Federal Reserve Bank Note, Series of 1918</strong><p>The $50 denomination of the Series of 1918, with the city and bank on the face, was issued just in one location, St. Louis, and in only one signature combination. This type is a classic rarity, with an original distribution of only 4,000 pieces. In addition to the St. Louis notes, plates were made for Atlanta and 40,000 notes were printed (but never issued), and for Boston, for which there is no record of any being printed. The back shows <em>Panama </em>in the form of a goddess standing between two oceans, with a passenger liner to the left and a battleship to the right. <p>Texas collector William A. Philpott, Jr., long-time secretary of the Texas Bankers Association, rescued most of the existing St. Louis notes by corresponding with Federal Reserve Banks and alerting employees to his interest. At one time he reported that Treasury records revealed just 33 outstanding, but he later amended that figure to 70. I (QDB) remember meeting and talking with Mr. Philpott in the 1950s. He was the grand master of Federal Reserve notes of different denominations and varieties at a time when few others were interested.，From the Joel R. Anderson Collection of United States Paper Money, Part I. Earlier from Charles M. Wormser, June 1970; Dean Oakes 1975 Fixed Priced List; Bowers and Merenas sale of January 1990, lot 3705; Heritage Auctions sale of April 2006, lot 17264; R.M. Smythes August 2006 Bank Note Reporter ad.，