The Currency Gallery and Research Foundation

Fifth Issue - No Overprint. Hand Signed, Numbered and Dated.

Identifier
LW18125-1

Fr. #
TN-10/TN-10a

Fifth Issue Treasury Notes

With new loans and fiscal revenues far from adequate, a new monetary expedient was necessary. Specifically, the Chairman of the House of Ways and Means Committee argued for a circulating currency of small denominations payable to bearer, transferable by delivery and receivable in all payments for public lands and taxes.

On February 24, 1815, Congress authorized 25,000,000 of these "Small" Treasury Notes. A few days later, the war ended and only $4,969,400 of $100 notes bearing interest at 5.4% and $3,392,994 of "Small" $3, $5, $10, $20 and $50 denominations were actually issued (although a total of $9,070,386 worth were reissued). The latter bore no interest by circulating as money.

All Treasury Notes were made by Murray, Draper, Fairman and Co. and are one-sided. The first two issues were signed by Timothy Matlock and Charles Biddle while the latter three were signed by Earnest Fox and Samual Clarke. The last issue was alternately signed by F.W. McGeary and C.A. Colville. Somee were countersigned by William White (first two issues), T.D.T. Tucker (last two issues) or Joseph Nourse (the Register on the last issue only).

The "Small Treasury Notes" of $3-$50 were used to purchase goods and services by individuals, pay custom duties by merchants, and acted as cash reserves for banks, thus preventing them from being discounted. As a result, they became the first circulating currency issued by the United States.

All of these Series are extremely rare in any form, and nearly all of the few known are specimens, proofs or remainders, with most cancelled in some way. Fully signed, dated, numbered and uncancelled notes are virtualy non-existant.


$100.00			$100.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.


$50.00			$50.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.


$20.00			$20.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.


$10.00			$10.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.


$5.00			$5.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.


$3.00			$3.00 Face Design		This Note is Uniface. There is No Back Design.