(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

First issued in mid-1860’s, and actively used between the years 1882 and 1933, the Gold Certificate was issued as a form of paper currency here in the United States. Generally, a gold certificate acts like a certificate of ownership that gold owners hold instead of actual gold.

Because of the fact that the Gold Certificate was a type of paper currency intended to represent actual gold coinage, the practice of its redemption for the precious metal was ceased in 1933 by the United States Government, and until 1964 it was actually deemed illegal for anyone to possess these notes. This prohibition was lifted in 1964 though, as to allow currency collectors to legally own it. This resulted in the issue being converted to the standard legal tender, without its initial correlation to gold.

The issuance of the Gold Certificate was actually officially discontinued in 1928, before the termination of the Gold Standard by the United States Government in 1933, ultimately ceasing its circulation altogether. The permanent suspension was also largely due to the public’s fear that the notes would become obsolete and invaluable over time.

The Gold Certificate was approved under the Act of March 3, 1963, which is also the same act authorizing the issuance of the United States Notes. The actual year of print is said to vary between the years 1963 and 1965. This was probably because it doesn’t carry a printed series date, as this information was hand-dated upon issue. It is also said that the first few series of the Gold Certificate had the identification of each gold depositor, in lieu of payment.

The first issues of the Gold Certificate has a vignette of an eagle, and this was evenly featured on all the denominations it comes in. Later issues, like series 1870, 1871 and 1875, had depictions of various historical figured printed on it, with abstract designs featured on its reverse.

With the exception of Series 1888, 1900, and 1934, which was only issued to specified gold depositors, Gold Certificates from Series of 1882 and onwards was made payable to the bearer, making it transferable and redeemable for its equivalent value in gold.

Just like all other United States currency, the Gold Certificate was produced in two sizes; large and small. The larger sized Gold Certificates were put into circulation between the years 1865 and 1928, and the smaller sized ones between the years 1928 and 1934. The reverse side of all these notes were printed in orange, with the exception of the 1928 series, which were in green and more similar to the Federal Reserve Notes in design.

Along with the $5000 and $10000 notes from the Series of 1888, all of the notes from Series of 1900 have been redeemed and no longer carries the legal tender status. Most of these notes have already been destroyed, and the remaining, which was at kept in a box in a post office near the United States Treasury in Washington D.C., during that time, has a tale with an interesting twist to it. It was said that during a fire in late 1935, employees of this post office threw burning boxes out into the streets, including the box containing the only remaining notes of series 1900. This box was said to have burst open and it contents snatched up by the surrounding people gathered near the building. Unfortunately though, these notes were already deemed worthless at that time. Today, this series of Gold Certificates carries only a few hundred in numismatic value amongst collectors.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Now that you’ve started collecting your currency you need a good way to store and protect those one dollar bills. Most collectors use a plastic sleeve that allows you to study both the front and back of the bill. It’s important to use a plastic sleeve without PVC plastic in it.

The PVC in the plastic can deteriorate over time and that will allow gases and acids to be released from the plastic onto your currency, ruining the bill. Many coin, stamp, and hobby stores will have an appropriate system for you to safely house your dollar bill collection.

Some collectors not only put their currency collections in plastic sleeves, but then store them in boxes to protect them from the sunlight and other light that may cause fading or other deterioration problems.

You can store them according to series, serial numbers, or the Federal Reserve Banks they were printed at.

Paper money is graded according to its condition. While there is no one absolute standard for grading currency, most collectors, dealers, and price guides will adhere to a basic standard.

For example, UNC or CU would mean crisp uncirculated. This means that there is no sign of wear, previous handling, nor folds, creases, or dog-eared corners.

AU would mean almost uncirculated. There may be a slight imperfection like a fold on one corner or a bend in the center that isn’t creased.

EF or XF would mean extremely fine. There could be three light folds or one hard fold that breaks the surface of the bill, but means the bill is clean and bright. There could be a rounding at the corner or corners.

VF would be very fine. A bill rated VF could have several folds, but the bill would still be crisp and very little dirt. There would be minor tears and the corners may be worn just a tad.

F would stand for fine. This would mean that the bill may be a bit soft. This grade would be about average for a bill that has been in circulation.

VG stands for very good. This type of bill could have tears or small holes. It is no longer crisp and there may be some staining.

Good(G), fair and poor. This would be the ratings for notes that are a bit shabby. It could have missing pieces or writing. This is a bill that is pretty worn out.

What grade of dollar bills do you look for? Do you save them or spend them? Let us know.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

With 23 different series of dollar bills issued and 12 different Federal Reserve Banks, there are more than 250 different notes that you could collect. Sounds easy right? Not really.

While it’s possible to collect one of each note, it would be a daunting task, so many collectors choose different things to collect. In addition, some of the dollar bills are very old and would be hard to find. But then again, the thrill is in the hunt, isn’t it.

The best way to start your collection is to choose exactly what you want to collect, meaning what type of serial numbers appeal to you, or you could decide to collect only dollar bills printed at very specific Federal Reserve Banks.

For example many collectors collect certain serial numbers. The most popular serial numbers to collect are the very low ones, but in reality, the very high serial numbers are the most rare because not every series reaches a high number. The more rare, the more valuable.

Some collectors look for ladder serial numbers like 12345678 or descending serial numbers like 87654321, while others look for solid or near solid serial numbers such as 11111111 or 222222212. Still other collectors look for serial numbers that repeat like 123123123, binary serial numbers that have only two digits in any combination like 113311133.

You could also collect what are called birthday dollar bills, these are dollar bills whose serial number contains a date, like 1964, etc.

Star notes have an asterisk or star either before or after the serial number. This happens because of production errors. An asterisk is put in place of a number so that the correct count of the dollar bills in a particular serial number run can be produced without having to repeat the serial number.

What type of dollar bills you choose to collect is entirely up to you, but try to be selective with regards to condition and rarity. If you find a dollar bill that appeals to you and it isn’t in the greatest condition, you still may want to add it to your collection until you can find another one in much better condition. How rare a particular dollar bill is may, in some cases, outweigh the overall condition.

What do you look for in your dollar bill collection? Do you look for particular serial numbers or a particular Federal Reserve Bank? Let us know!

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

 Loading ...

Have you ever seen a $5,000 bill up close? If you are like most people, probably not. Back in 1969, the circulation of the 1945 series of bills in denominations over $100 was stopped. These bills were printed as Federal Reserve notes only between 1918 and 1945. Even though you may never get to touch one of these rare bills, it is interesting to hear about them. Take a look at these facts on the larger denomination paper currency that is no longer in circulation.

These are the faces printed on these bills:

$500 William McKinley
$1,000 Grover Cleveland
$5,000 James Madison
$10,000 Salmon P. Chase
$100,000 Woodrow Wilson

There are different images printed on the backs of these old bills as well. On the $500 large sized, blue seal Federal Reserve note, there was an image of DeSoto Discovering the Mississippi in 1541. On the back of the blue seal 1918 series $1,000 bill, there is an image of an eagle. On the green seal $5,000 bill, there is an image of Washington Resigning his Commission. There is an image of The Embarkation of the Pilgrims on the green seal $10,000 bill (series 1918).

The series 1934 $100,000 bill simply said, “The United States of America -100,000- One Hundred Thousand Dollars” on the back. This was a gold certificate that was never released for general circulation. It is not legal for collectors to possess this bill. It was also the only one of these bills that was printed red on the back.

These bill denominations were discontinued simply because they were not used very often. These bills are no longer available from the government. Those few that still remain in existence are in the hands of those individuals who collect rare currency.

You can see images of these bills on the Bureau of Printing and Engraving Website: www.moneyfactory.gov.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites