Raphael P. Thian worked in the United States Adjutant General's Office as a clerk from 1861 to 1911. After the Civil War Thian devoted much of his spare time to researching and documenting the paper records of the Confederate Treasury which part of the "Rebel Archives" being stored in Washington DC. Thian felt that it was of great historical importance to document the Finances of the Confederacy because 'the history of the purse is as important as that of the sword'. This was a monumental undertaking which took him twelve years to complete; sadly, Thian's research work never received the support or recognition it deserved.

The core of Thian's labor was his 190-page "Register of the Confederate Debt'" which was privately published in 1880, probbaly only twenty or thirty copies. This book provided information on all Confederate Government Treasury notes and Securities, although many records related to the Seventh Issue could not be located. Thian patiently documented each Issue of Treasury notes, the denominations, the issue dates, the quantities, and where available, the serial number runs and the names of the clerks who signed them on behalf of the Register and the Treasurer. 

Thian's book was reprinted by Douglas Ball in 1972, in its original form. It is not an easy document to read or navigate, but the information it contained proved invaluable for serious collectors of Confederate currency. Ball's book is now out of print, and second-hand copies are not easy to find. 

The Author's new Digital Register of Confederate Treasury Notes 1861 - 1865 incorporates an enriched, expaned and modernised representation of Thian's original research.