The Americans faced extreme economic hardship during the Revolutionary War and the immediate period thereafter. The Continental Congress issued money that was not backed by gold—the phrase "not worth a Continental" describes how worthless this dollar would become during the war and immediately thereafter. The Continental Congress struggled to pay its debts, and people were loath to become war contractors as a result. Congress believed war contractors should act out of a sense of "virtue;" meaning they should not make money from this war.  For this reason, war contractors either looked to sell substandard merchandise or not sell at all. Washington's correspondence from Valley Forge is filled with him begging Congress for supplies and money.

Another economic hardship to consider is caused by war in general—fathers and sons who were needed to work farms went off to fight in the war. Armies from both sides appropriated livestock and other goods for their own use. The war in the West and South took on a guerrilla nature, with far more property damage than in the Eastern theater. All of these factors combined to make the war very costly for the Americans, whether they were loyalists or patriots.

There were economic hardships associated with Revolutionary War. For the colonists, a lack of money was a critical hardship. Once we declared independence, each state government and the federal government printed its own money. Most people didn’t have a great deal of confidence in the paper money that was printed. As a result, some people eventually wouldn’t accept paper money as a form of payment.

Another economic issue was the lack of supplies. Because of the British blockade, it was more difficult for us to get supplies from other countries. There weren’t enough supplies for the soldiers. Getting supplies also became more difficult because there was concern about the value of printed currency. Basic items such as food, uniforms, weapons, and clothing were in short supply. Additionally, soldiers were required to pay for their own uniforms. This presented a financial issue for the soldiers because their pay was fairly low.

By the end of the war, our economy was in bad shape. There was a lot of inflation because of the printing of paper money by the state governments and the federal government. Many people were also concerned about the value of the paper money, and some people stopped accepting it as a form of payment. After the Revolutionary War, we also went into a recession.

The Revolutionary War led to hardships both during and after the war.