Philpott-Moody Collection

 

Collectors of Texas national bank notes get a sinking feeling when they see a note described as "esconced in the Philpott-Moody collection". It means that that note will never be available to purchase nor even available to see.

" ... the now famous Philpott-Moody Collection is only in existence today thanks to the Moody family, specifically Mary Moody Northern, who was the daughter of WL Moody Jr. As the story goes, in late 1960s two Texas paper money dealers were at a show and happened to have an uncut sheet of red seals on this Galveston bank. In a roundabout way they came to learn that Mrs. Northern was an interested buyer of paper money signed by her father. The sheet was then immediately sold to her for approximately $3,000, which was of course a significant sum of money for any currency item in that time period. A few years passed and the same dealers were in a position to buy the famous William A. Philpott Collection. Mr. Philpott was for 50 years the secretary of The Texas Bankers Association. He was just about the only collector with means and connections who was collecting large size nationals during their original time of issue. He assembled the very best collection of second and third charter TX notes; many of which were high grade and are today very rare. The Philpott collection was expansive and it included some more Moody signed Galveston banknotes; so the dealers went back to Mary Moody Northern to see if she would be interested in them. Not only did she buy the Galveston notes, she bought virtually the entire collection of thousands of banknotes. Having been born in 1892, many of the signors of the nationals were either old personal friends or former banking colleagues of her father. So it is because of the Moody family's banking history that the now fabled Philpott collection is still intact with so many wonderful items." <https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-7VEW6>

Some of the currency in the Philpott-Moody, which is housed in the SMU Library, in the Rowe Barr collection can be viewed on-line

HERE