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Sep 9, 1535
Wampum
North American Indians' first form of currency were white clam shells strung onto a strung called Wampum. -
Tobacco begins to be used as currency in Virginia
Barely a dozen years after its introduction to Virginia tobacco starts being used as currency and this use continues for nearly 200 years. -
Massachusetts raises limit on wampum as legal tender
The limit is raised to £2. -
Colonial Notes
The Massachusetts Bay Colony issued the first paper money in the colonies which would later form the United States. -
Franklin's Unique Counterfeit Deterrent
Benjamin Franklin's printing firm in Philadelphia printed colonial notes with nature prints, unique raised impressions of patterns vast from actual leaves. This process added an innocative and effective counterfeit deterrent to notes, not completely understood until centuries later. -
Continental Currency
American colonists issued paper currency for the Continental Congress to finance the Revolutionary War. The notes were backed by the "anticipation" of tax revenues. Without solid backing and easily counterfeited, the notes quickly became devalued, giving rise to the phrase "not worth a Continental." -
First Bank of the United States
The American Republic had considerable financial problems in its early days. The first American bank was organized by Robert Morris in 1781. This was a private bank but it helped in financing the Revoulutionary War, which did not end until 1783. Alexander Hamilton, a major organizational innovator in the Republic, argued for the creation of a central bank, a bankers' bank which would be the lender of last resort. -
Watchdog
The Philadelphia Mint pays $3 for a watchdog named Nero -
Alexander Hamilton dies
The first Secretary of the Treasury dies in a dual. -
The Gold Standard
Gold was officially made the standard of value in England in 1816. At this time, guidelines were made to allow for a non-inflationary production of standard banknotes which represented a certain amount of gold. Banknotes had been used in England and Europe for several hundred years before this time, but their worth had never been tied directly to gold. -
Clearing system developed by Boston banks
The Suffolk Bank of Boston, in co-operation with 6 other local banks, begins the development of a system of clearing inter-bank accounts. -
Secret Service
The Department of the Treasury established the United States Secret Service to control counterfeits, at that time amounting to one-third of circulated currency. -
"In God We Trust"
The Coinage Act authorizes the moto "In God We Trust" on all U.S coins. -
Federal Reserve Act
After 1893 and 1907 financial panics, the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 was passed. It created the Federal Reserve System as the nation's central bank to regulate the flow of money and credit for economic stability and growth. The system was authorized to issue Federal Reserve Notes, now the only U.S. currency produced and 99 percent of all currency in circulation. -
Standardized Design
Currency was reduced in size by 25 percent and standardized with uniform portraits on the faces and emblems and monuments on the backs. -
Security Thread and Microprinting
A security thread and microprinting were introduced, first in $50 and $100 notes, to deter counterfeiting by advanced copiers and printers
