United States Notes

A United States Note is a fiat paper currency that was issued directly into circulation by the United States Treasury Department. The notes were also known as Legal Tender Notes because of the inscription on its face stating "This Note is a Legal Tender. more...

" They were among the first national United States currency, authorized by the Legal Tender Act of 1862 and began circulating during the American Civil War. They preceded the National Bank Notes and Gold Certificates of 1865. On a United States Note, the Treasury seal and the note's serial number are printed in red.

United States Notes were printed in the following denominations: $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, $500, $1000, $5000, and $10,000.

The Treasury Department issued these notes directly into circulation, and they are obligations of the United States Government. The issuance of United States Notes is subject to limitations established by Congress. In order to stimulate the economy, the Acts of July 10, 1862 and March 3, 1863 (among other legislation) established a statutory limitation of $300 million on the amount of United States Notes authorized to be outstanding and in circulation. This currency was not backed by any deposit in any bank or government reserve, in contrast to the Gold Certificates at the time. They also did not bear interest, unlike the appropriately titled Interest Bearing Notes of 1861 to 1865. While $300 million was a significant figure in Civil War days, it is now a very small fraction of the total currency in circulation in the United States.

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