Notes:Scrip Way

Source:Barbeau (1830) and Source:Keyon (1835) show two adjacent basins ("116 Ft. Above Allegheny R.") at the tip of Grant's Hill in the square bounded by Fifth Street, Diamond Alley, Cherry Alley, and Grant Street.

These basins were part of Pittsburgh's first pumped water system: see Source:Tarr-devastation, p. 65; Source:Engineering, pp. 146–147

"Local matters," Pittsburgh Daily Gazette, 1849-04-18, [p. 3] (Newspapers.com 96009315):

Meeting of the Select Council on the subject of the Depreciation of the City Scrip.

The following Report and Ordinance were submitted for the purpose of remedying this evil.

The Finance Committee report,

That they held a meeting this afternoon for the purpose of devising some plan to allay the excited feelings of the community respecting the credit of the City Scrip, and came to the unanimous agreement to offer the accompanying draft of an Ordinance to the Councils, which, we believe, if passed, will do much to restore confidence in our scrip. The Councils are aware that the amount of our issues is but little over two hundred thousand dollars, of which the provision in the Ordinance, if passed, will absorb, or take out of circulation, a large portion of the same.

Frederick Lorenz, B. C. Sawyer, Harmar Denny, Isaac Jones, Robert McKnight, George W. Layng.

The second reading of the following Ordinance was then moved and carried, and Dr. Black then moved the third reading.

After remarks by Messrs. Layng, Lorenz, Black, Morrow, Kincaid, Shipton and Laughlin, the Ordinance was unanimously adopted.

"An Ordinance for the redemption of the City Scrip:"

Sec. 1st. Be it ordained and enacted by the citizens of Pittsburgh, in Select and Common Councils assembled, that the Committee on City Property be, and they are hereby authorized and required to, as soon as conveniently may be, to have the piece of ground known as the "Old Basin Lot," laid off into lots, and sold to the highest bidder, payment for the same to be received in the corporate issues of the city of Pittsburgh, of the denomination of one, two and three dollars, or in specie or other funds equivalent thereto. One third of the purchase money to be paid at the time of sale, one-third in six months, and the remainder in twelve months, with interest from the day of sale.

Sec. 2d. That the City Treasurer be, and he is hereby authorized to negotiate for City Scrip, the bonds of individuals held by the city for property sold, amounting to twenty-eight thousand dollars.

Sec. 3d. That the assessors of city taxes be, and they are hereby required to levy an additional tax of one mill on the dollar on all property taxable for city purposes, (as authorized by law,) the money so raised to be paid into the city treasury, and to be applied exclusively to the redemption of the City Scrip.

Sec. 4th. That for the purpose of consolidating the corporate issues of the city, as aforesaid, the City Treasurer be, and he is hereby authorized, whenever City Scrip to the amount of one hundred dollars or more is presented to him, to issue therefor, certificates of debt, redeemable in ten years, bearing an interest of six per cent per ann., from the passage of this ordinance, payable semiannually at the office of the City Treasurer, on the first days of July and January, in each and every year; said certificates not to be issued in less fractions than one hundred dollars.

Sec. 5th. That the faith, credit, revenue, and corporate property of the city be, and the same are hereby solemnly pledged for the redemption of the city certificates hereby authorized to be issued and for the payment of the interest accruing thereon.

Sec. 6th. That the City Treasurer be, and he is hereby instructed and required, in presence of the Finance Committee, or a majority of them, to cancel and destroy all such City Scrip as may be paid into the City Treasury, under the provisions of this ordinance.

The above ordinance has, of course, to pass the Common Council.

"Local matters," Daily Morning Post, 1849-04-26, [p. 2] (Newspapers.com 86641481): "☞ The Committee on City Property have advertised the old basin lot for sale. They have laid out an alley in the plan, which they call Scrip Alley."

Source:Old-water-lot (1849-05-07): Lots sold at auction, payments to be made in "City Scrip."

Source:Local-matters-1850-06-19: "New Alleys—Singular Names.—In laying off the old basin lots, a space was reserved for two alles [sic], the one running from Grant Street to Cherry Alleyy [sic], the other from Fifth Street to Diamond Alley. They are to be called by the singular names of Scrip Alley and Relief Alley."

Source:History-of-allegheny-county, part I

• p. 623: "The first water-works was built in 1826, on the corner and on both sides of Cecil's alley and what is now Duquesne way, about half a square below the Sixth street bridge. A strong pair of engines forced the water from the Allegheny river to the top of Grant's hill. The basin occupied the western side of Grant street from Diamond alley to Fifth avenue, and from Grant street to Cherry alley. It was abandoned in 1843, or shortly afterward, and the city sold the site in 1848 for the purpose of redeeming its shinplasters, called 'city scrip,' and the alley through the middle of it was called 'Scrip alley,' in commemoration of the fact. St. Peter's church and the buildings between Grant street and Cherry alley now occupy the site of the old basin, and the height of the level of the basin was the original height of Grant's hill, which was the height of the courtroom floor of the old courthouse, burned in 1882. ¶ Remembering that the original town extended only to Grant street, this basin was at a sufficient elevation to supply the whole city with water at the time it was built. The water, too, at that time, was good, but is now, at the site of the old pumping-house, foul with the drainage of sewers above it."
• p. 624: "During the panic of 1837 the city, being either unable to collect taxes, or being otherwise hard up for money, issued scrip, or 'shinplasters,' of the denominations of $1, $2 and $3, to the extent of $300,000, and this remained in circulation until 1848, when the old water-reservoir lot was laid off and sold, the proceeds being used to redeem this outstanding scrip. Small sums of this issue were in private hands until a few years since, but it is probably now all redeemed."

Source:Killikelly, p. 192: "The money market in 1848 became unsteady and was the source of much uneasiness, which extended into 1849, when the city made provision for the redemption of its scrip, the large issue of which was regarded by many as a menace to the credit of the city and the welfare of its inhabitants. Further issue was prohibited, and by the sale of the 'Old Basin' lot, corner Fifth and Grant, and the substitution of bonds, the bulk of it was called in."

Source:History-pgh-environs-2, p. 77: "The stringencies of the 'panic of 1837' affected Pittsburgh's various interests as injuriously as those of any other city in the United States, and for a season the local banks with one exception, the Bank of Pittsburgh, suspended specie payment. This action was first put up squarely to the councils of the city of Pittsburgh and approved by these bodies. The city itself floated large issues of what was then termed 'shin-plasters' for municipal circulation. These issues were later taken up and redeemed. The Exchange Bank loaned the city $100,000 with which to take up this 'fiat money' and to pay other debts."