1780 Massachusetts Colonial $2 | Black Raven Currency

THE ARTIFACT

Massachusetts $2 · MA-279 · May 5, 1780

This hole-cancelled Massachusetts note bears signatures connected with Loammi Baldwin, Thomas Dawes and Peter Boyer. The actual note remains the centerpiece of the exhibit while its PCGS crossover is in progress.

Front of the actual Massachusetts MA-279 two dollar note — Actual note from the Black Raven Personal Collection — front.

Reverse photograph slot — the original reverse photograph will be placed here when available in the site files.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Massachusetts in 1780

Historical portrait of Loammi Baldwin — Loammi Baldwin · historical portrait

Historical portrait of Thomas Dawes — Thomas Dawes · historical portrait

Title page of the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution — Massachusetts Constitution · 1780 · original historical document

THE STORY

Three Signatures on a Piece of Revolutionary America

Issued while the Revolutionary War was still underway, this Massachusetts $2 note belongs to a moment when the new nation was financing a war, building public credit and creating institutions that would outlast the Revolution itself.

What makes this particular note especially compelling are the names written on it. Loammi Baldwin and Thomas Dawes connect the artifact to people whose lives extended far beyond paper money, while Peter Boyer’s signature on the reverse adds another surviving human mark.

One of those names even leads to an unexpected piece of American folklore—and that is where the story becomes much bigger than a two-dollar note.

WATCH THE FULL STORY

The Massachusetts 1780 Note

The complete episode will follow the people behind the signatures and the surprising history connected to this small piece of Revolutionary-era paper.

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