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Remarkable 'short snorter' series 1935A "HAWAII" overprint $1 silver certificate (serial P 35453390 C), signed within days of the bombings by the combat crews of both atomic missions—including all 12 Enola Gay crewmen and 12 of the 13 Bockscar crewmen (missing only Lt. Philip M. Barnes, USN).
The front is annotated in ink, "Aug. 6, 1945, Atomic Bomb $1 on Hiroshima, Japan," and is signed in ink by all twelve of the Enola Gay crew: Col. Paul Tibbets, Capt. William S. 'Deak' Parsons, Capt. Robert Lewis, Lt. Morris Jeppson, Maj. Thomas Ferebee, Capt. Theodore Van Kirk, Pvt. Richard Nelson, Sgt. Joe S. Stiborik, SSgt. Wyatt E. Duzenbury, Sgt. Robert H. Shumard, SSgt. Robert Caron, and Lt. Jacob Beser.
The reverse is annotated in ink, "Atomic Bomb #2 on Nagasaki, Aug. 8, 1945," and is signed in ink by twelve of the thirteen Bockscar crew: SSgt. Edward K. Buckley, SSgt. Raymond C. Gallagher, Sgt. Albert T. 'Pappy' DeHart, Lt. Jacob Beser, Sgt. Abe M. Spitzer, Lt. Fred J. Olivi, Cdr. Frederick Ashworth, MSgt. John D. Kuharek, Capt. Charles D. Albury, Maj. Charles W. Sweeney, Capt. James F. Van Pelt, Jr., and Capt. Kermit K. Beahan. In very good condition, with overall wear and soiling.
Originally owned by SSgt. George R. 'Bob' Caron, tail gunner of the Enola Gay, who personally collected the signatures. Accompanied by a color copy of Caron's original 1982 letter of provenance, explaining that this bill was "signed by the crews of the Enola Gay and Bocks Card, the B-29's that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, within a few days after the bombings…Beser's signature on both sides was added some years later as I must have forgotten to get his at the time. I understand Parson's signature is rare as he died in 1950. Shumard died in 1965 and Buckley more recently. I understand others are rare as their whereabouts are unknown or don't sign autographs."
This extraordinary 'short snorter' captures a fleeting and profoundly consequential moment at the close of World War II, linking together the crews responsible for the only use of atomic weapons in combat. The underlying note—a Hawaii overprint silver certificate—carries its own wartime significance, having been specially issued after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 for circulation in the Pacific theater. This example is transformed into something far rarer: a contemporaneously signed 'short snorter' executed by the airmen of the Enola Gay and Bockscar within days of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki missions. The near-complete roster of both crews, combined with Caron’s direct provenance, elevates this piece to exceptional historical significance—representing not only a unique convergence of autographs, but a tangible connection to the end of World War II and the dawn of the atomic age.
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