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Encyclopedia WinterCampica - Suggest Change
Current Entry: Currency
At Winter Camp IV, the main incentive in charging Dan Bollman with creating alternate legal tender was to invent a medium of exchange to add realism to two events. The low-valued bills--$1 and $2--were intended for use with the McDonald's Breakfast, served at the new walk-up window at Clearwater cabin. Higher values were designed to enliven Casino Night. Beyond these uses, the currency was little-needed. A cursory look at the designs and alternate notation on the bills will reveal that a seriously whimsical design dimension existed.
Whimsy was not the issue when the question of money came up for Winter Camp V. As the government moved to a Communist system, tight fiscal control became a necessity. Accordingly, the previous year's currency was devalued and new bills issued, also designed by Dan. This series was somewhat more conventionally designed (including clandestine anti-counterfeiting measures on the $50 bill), and the bills became the focus of much Winter Camp activity. While they were still central to the activities of Casino Night, the economy that developed used Winter Camp cash in a far more dominant role than the year before. This new approach to internal money was a much greater success, and the bills were retained for subsequent camps.
Inflation, however, took its toll on the system. The operation of the gaming tables pushed currency into circulation far faster than the Central Committee had intended, and "old money" became a problem as bills re-emerged from year to year. A pair of stopgap measures was instituted at Winter Camp VIII. First, all public officials saw their salaries drastically slashed. Second, bills circulated under the Korish regime were explicitly marked on the reverse, with Mike Osvath's name and address stamped in black ink. No bills lacking this imprint were classified as legal tender. Although this brought the inflation problem under control, an embezzlement scandal involving the Korish and some of his closest followers cast new doubts on the wisdom of internal finance. While no one was convicted in the uproar, the Winter Camp bills which remained were quietly retired at the close of the encampment.
The remaining $20 bills returned at Winter Camp XX, when the debut of the Winter Camp Stock Market game brought with it a need for hard currency for investors. The cash made another appearance at the Sim City Market at Winter Camp XXIV.
Winter Camp IV Currency Series
| $1 ($|e |) ið | Jeff Rand (Pope Jeff I) |
| $2 | Doug Wilson |
| $10 | Dan Bollman |
| $50 (1 gold piece) | Steve Donohue |
| $666 (1 Soul) | Ron Donohue |
| $5,000,000 | Harold Oatley |
Winter Camp V-VIII Currency Series
| $1 | Harold Oatley |
| $5 | Joe Wyckoff |
| $10 | Robert Baden-Powell |
| $20 | Carroll A. Edson |
| $50 | E. Urner Goodman |
| $100 | The stylized Indian ("MGM") of the OA logo |
Joe Wyckoff, portrayed on the $5 bill, was Council Executive during Winter Camp V. Upon learning of his depiction on this issue of bills, he noted in a congratulatory memo to Downriver District Executive Lou Salute that he was "flattered" and thought that the currency was "an interesting gimmick".