Fractional currency - Small denomination bills (also called postage or postal currency) used in place of coins. Denominations ranged from 3 cents to 50 cents.
Discount - Before 1864 private banks issued their own paper money. Paper money far from home traded at a discount to local currency. The discount on paper money issued by solvent banks equaled the cost of transporting the bill to the issuing bank and the value of the interest lost on the money while it was in transit. The discount on New York City bills was half a percent in Columbus in 1863.
Mule - A coin or token struck from mismatched dies. A coin struck with the obverse of a New Zealand coin and the reverse of a Canadian coin is a mule.
Shinplasters - Usually bills with a denomination of less than $1; less commonly, privately issued bills of all denominations.
Specie - Gold or silver. In tough economic or politcal times, banks suspended the payment of specie and would pay out only paper money. During the Civil War a paper dollar was worth only a fraction of a gold dollar.
Storecard - A token issued by a private company. The token functioned both as a coin substitute and as an advertising medium.
