Lincoln and Washington on U.S. Currency

As we prepare for President’s Day, it got me thinking about how many different notes Presidents Lincoln and Washington have been featured on. Most of us are familiar with the modern Lincoln $5 bill, but the first time Lincoln appeared on a $5 note was on the red and blue seal Federal Reserve Note from 1914.

 

 

Then came the 1923 Silver Certificate, fondly nicknamed by collectors the “Porthole Note,” as it appears you are looking at Lincoln through a porthole. This was the last year of large-size U.S. currency. Although all are dated 1923, they were printed through 1927.

A quick side note about the $5 bill: there were actually seven others who had their portraits on various designs of the five-dollar note in addition to Honest Abe. They include:

• Alexander Hamilton
• Andrew Jackson
• Benjamin Harrison
• Chief Onepapa
• George Thomas
• James Garfield
• Ulysses Grant

Lincoln also appeared on a wide variety of National Currency notes.

Some of the More Esoteric Notes Featuring Lincoln

Fractional currency was exactly what it sounds like—fractions of a dollar, just like coins. These notes were printed during the Civil War as coins were being hoarded due to their precious metal content. People even started using postage stamps as currency. To ease the shortage, the U.S. government began printing fractional currency.

 

Next up: the $10 “Greenback.” This was the first federally issued paper currency since the Revolutionary War.

 

 

This interest-bearing treasury note is extremely rare—only 35 are known to exist. One sold in 2018 for $102,000.

 

Currency was once backed by gold. A gold certificate note like this can be purchased today for around $25,000—but if you had exchanged it for gold at the time, you’d have the equivalent of approximately $650,000 in today’s value (based on $1300 per ounce of gold).

 

Lastly, known as the “Rainbow Note,” this 1869 $100 bill is very scarce. Only about 30 are believed to still exist. Current value? Approximately $500,000!