The 1899 United States five-dollar Silver Certificate is known as the Indian Chief Note note. The note features Sioux chief Running Antelope wearing an incorrect war bonnet. It is the only US federal paper currency featuring a named Native American.
The Series of 1899 United States five-dollar Silver Certificate was the fourth issue of "silver certificates". The other denominations in the series were the $1 and $10. [1] The note featured a Native American portrait in the center of the obverse. Unnamed Native Americans are pictured on some obsolete US banknotes but the 1899 five-dollar note is the only US federal currency featuring a named Native American's portrait. In the year 2000, the United States produced a one-dollar coin with a depiction of another named Native American: Sacagawea. [2] The engraving for the Native American on the 1899 United States five-dollar Silver was made from an 1872 image of Sioux Chief Tatoka-Inyanka (Running Antelope) captured by photographer Alexander Gardner. The chief is seen wearing an Indian peace medal featuring US President Andrew Johnson. He had a three feather headdress and his hair is adorned with fur. He is seated and he holds a wing-fan and a peace pipe. [3]
G.F.C. Smillie of the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) engraved the portrait of Running Antelope of the Hunkpapa Sioux which is found on the large size 1899 five-dollar Silver Certificate. [4] During the photoshoot Running Antelope wore his three-feathered headdress but when engraving for the note, his headdress did not fit in the space of the 1899 five-dollar Silver Certificate. Smillie found an image of a feathered-War bonnet that was likely Pawnee and he used it in the engraving. Because of the incorrect headdress, the engraved portrait was controversial. [5] [3] [2] The Sioux were enemies of the Pawnee so the depiction of a Sioux chief with his enemies war bonnet became a controversy. [2] Because of the depiction of a Native American on the obverse, collectors refer to the note as the "Indian Chief Note". [6] [7]
The BEP printed 566,054,000 of the 1899 five-dollar bill. Less than 12,000 are available for currency collectors. [3]
Federal Reserve Notes are the currently issued banknotes of the United States dollar. The United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces the notes under the authority of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 and issues them to the Federal Reserve Banks at the discretion of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The Reserve Banks then circulate the notes to their member banks, at which point they become liabilities of the Reserve Banks and obligations of the United States.
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is Federal Reserve Notes for the Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank. In addition to paper currency, the BEP produces Treasury securities; military commissions and award certificates; invitations and admission cards; and many different types of identification cards, forms, and other special security documents for a variety of government agencies. The BEP's role as printer of paper currency makes it one of two Treasury Department agencies involved in currency production. The other is the United States Mint, which mints coinage. With production facilities in Washington, D.C., and Fort Worth, Texas, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing is the largest producer of government security documents in the United States.
The United States five-dollar bill (US$5) is a denomination of United States currency. The current $5 bill features U.S. president Abraham Lincoln and the Great Seal of the United States on the front and the Lincoln Memorial on the back. All $5 bills issued today are Federal Reserve Notes. As of December 2018, the average life of a $5 bill in circulation is 4.7 years before it is replaced due to wear. Approximately 6% of all paper currency produced by the U.S. Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing in 2009 were $5 bills.
The United States twenty-dollar bill (US$20) is a denomination of U.S. currency. A portrait of Andrew Jackson, the seventh U.S. president (1829–1837), has been featured on the obverse of the bill since 1928; the White House is featured on the reverse.
The United States one-dollar bill (US$1), sometimes referred to as a single, has been the lowest value denomination of United States paper currency since the discontinuation of U.S. fractional currency notes in 1876. An image of the first U.S. president (1789–1797), George Washington, based on the Athenaeum Portrait, a 1796 painting by Gilbert Stuart, is currently featured on the obverse, and the Great Seal of the United States is featured on the reverse. The one-dollar bill has the oldest overall design of all U.S. currency currently being produced. The reverse design of the present dollar debuted in 1935, and the obverse in 1963 when it was first issued as a Federal Reserve Note.
Silver certificates are a type of representative money issued between 1878 and 1964 in the United States as part of its circulation of paper currency. They were produced in response to silver agitation by citizens who were angered by the Fourth Coinage Act, which had effectively placed the United States on a gold standard. The certificates were initially redeemable for their face value of silver dollar coins and later in raw silver bullion. Since 1968 they have been redeemable only in Federal Reserve Notes and are thus obsolete, but still valid legal tender at their face value and thus are still an accepted form of currency.
Running Antelope or Tȟatȟóka Íŋyaŋke became a head chief of the Húŋkpapȟa in 1851. Known for his bravery in war, and skills in oratory and diplomacy, Running Antelope was one of four Huŋkpapȟa principal chiefs who acted as close advisors to Sitting Bull during the Plains Indian Wars. His belief that compromise with the whites was in their best interests led to his eventually distancing himself from Sitting Bull. He is the only Native American depicted on U.S. paper money, but the picture caused ill will as the Series 1899 $5 Silver Certificate pictured Running Antelope as a chief wearing a Pawnee head dress as the original Sioux head dress was too tall for the engraving.
"Educational Series" is the informal name used by numismatists to refer to a series of United States silver certificates produced by the U.S. Treasury in 1896, after its Bureau of Engraving and Printing chief Claude M. Johnson ordered a new currency design. The notes depict various allegorical motifs and are considered by some numismatists to be the most beautiful monetary designs ever produced by the United States.
This page is a glossary of notaphily. Notaphily is the study of paper money or banknotes.
A Funnyback is a type of one-dollar silver certificate produced in 1928 and 1934 in the United States. The note marked the introduction of small-size banknotes in the United States. People referred to the note as a "Funnyback" based on the significantly lighter green ink and unusual font printed on the reverse.
In early 18th century Colonial America, engravers began experimenting with copper plates as an alternative medium to wood. Applied to the production of paper currency, copper-plate engraving allowed for greater detail and production during printing. It was the transition to steel engraving that enabled banknote design and printing to rapidly advance in the United States during the 19th century.
A silver certificate is a certificate of ownership that silver owners hold instead of storing the actual silver. Several countries have issued silver certificates, including Cuba, the Netherlands, and the United States. Silver certificates have also been privately issued by various mints and bullion companies. One example was the Liberty Dollar issued by NORFED from 1998 to 2009.
The United States two-dollar bill (US$2) is a current denomination of United States currency. A portrait of Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States (1801–1809), is featured on the obverse of the note. The reverse features an engraving of John Trumbull's painting Declaration of Independence.
The United States one-hundred-thousand-dollar bill (US$100,000) is a former denomination of United States currency, issued for two years from 1934 to 1935 as designated for Federal Reserve use. The bill never circulated publicly, rather having been used as a large denomination note for gold transactions between Federal Reserve Banks. Featuring President Woodrow Wilson, the $100,000 bill was initiated by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing under the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in response to the hoarding of gold during the Great Depression, believed to be slowing economic regrowth. Executive Order 6102, signed by President Roosevelt, was ratified by the United States Congress in 1934. Executive Order 6102 prohibited the hoarding of gold certificates, accompanied also by bullion and coins.
The Black Eagle is a type of one-dollar silver certificate produced in 1899 in the United States. The note measured 7.38 in (187 mm) by 3.18 in (81 mm); it was of the large-size variety of bank-notes issued by the United States. The note featured a Bald eagle with its wings spread. The note was also referred to as "Eagle of the Capitol", because the United States Capitol is visible behind the eagle. The note was issued from 1899 to 1923 and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) printed 3,604,239,600 Black Eagles. Because of the large size, it is colloquially referred to as a "horseblanket".
The United States 1000 dollar bill(US$1000) is an obsolete denomination of United States currency. The bill was recalled in 1969 but it is still legal tender.
The United States 10,000 dollar Bill(US$10000) (1878–1934) is an obsolete denomination of United States currency. The $10,000 note was the highest denomination of US currency to be used by the public. The $10,000 note was discontinued in 1969 but they are still legal tender. The notes are valuable to collectors and since they are still legal tender, banks will redeem the notes for face value.
George Frederick Cumming Smillie also known as G.F.C. Smillie or Fred Smillie was an engraver for the United States Treasury. Smillie engraved portraits for the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) from 1894 to 1924.
History Instructing Youth is a series 1896 United States one-dollar bill. It was part of the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing's Educational Series and the series was replaced in 1899. It is considered one of the most popular US large-size notes. The scene on the note's obverse is allegorical and the woman appears to be instructing the young boy about United States history.