NNP

Any book on aspects of the early history of mining in Georgia would be remiss to leave out the background surrounding the events leading up to the formation of the Pigeon Roost Mining Company.

The story of the Pigeon Roost Mining Company is intimately interwoven with that of the Bank of Darien and the Belfast Mining Company, all three of which issued their own scrip or paper money. In fact, the Pigeon Roost scrip is in all probability a direct product of the Darien Bank. This book will unravel that complex story step by step.

The Pigeon Roost Mining Company has long held interest with bank note collectors because of the fancy scrip issued by that company in the mid 1830’s. Not much has been published on the company. As I researched the company over the past two years, I quickly became deeply entangled with the Georgia gold rush, and the development of the mines there, much of which started with or at the Pigeon Roost.

Over time, I enquired about American mining scrip as a whole, and it soon appeared that the Pigeon Roost Mining Company scrip was, in fact, the first known gold mining scrip issued in America. It is an integral and important part of America’s first Gold Rush, and a symbol of the harsh banking conditions of the times. It precedes any scrip from the coal mines of the east, iron mines of the north, and gold mines of the Appalachians. As such, it is deserving of a better story than what has been told, if one could be found.

This book was written by Fred N. Holabird with help from Al Adams, who made the entire project possible by his generous, unlimited access to his massive and wonderful Georgia Gold Rush Memorabilia Collection. The authors would like to thank and show appreciation to David Marsh, Mack Martin and Carl Anderson for their work to promote interest and understanding of Georgia Scrip.