US Banknotes

The U.S. didn't print any $20 bills dated 1931. Please check again and post a new question.

Ulysses S. Grant

No one keeps track of the actual number in circulation, and the number printed every year varies considerably with the economy. The link below shows annual production figures going back to 1980.

The average $1 bill lasts about 3 to 3½ years before wearing out, so a very rough ballpark estimate might be that 3 years worth of production are in circulation at any given time. That works out to about 10 billion $1 bills, give or take a few.

Red ink usually indicates a bill is a United States Note, a form of paper money issued directly by the government instead of by the Federal Reserve System.

During the 20th century US Notes only made up a small fraction of bills in circulation. They had similar designs to and were completely equivalent to green-seal Federal Reserve Notes, so production was discontinued in the late 1960s to save on printing and distribution costs.

1934 $10 FRNs are not considered to be rare. As of 01/2012, retail values are $12 to $20 for a bill in circulated condition, and $35 to $40 for an uncirculated bill regardless of the series letter next to the date. A dealer of course will pay wholesale, face value to about 2/3 of those numbers

If the bill is dated 1934 A, has a brown seal and the word HAWAII in large letters it's a special bill issued during WWII. Values range from $45 to $75 circulated and $275 to $300 uncirculated.

In circulated condition they have no extra value.

If they're uncirculated you might get $3-$4 for them but that's only because they're uncirculated rather than consecutive.

George Washington

Technically, yes. While John Adams (the second president) has never been depicted on the face of a 20th or 21st-century US bill, he does appear on the back of the current $2 bill as one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Prices as of 09/2012 for bills in average condition:

1907: $75 to $180

1922: $85 to $225

1928: $35 to $100

Please check again and post a new question. The U.S. did not print any $100 bills dated 1968.

The U.S. didn't print any $2 bills dated 2002. Please check again and post a new question

Please check again and post a new question.

The highest denomination silver coin in 1927 was $1. In fact, the U.S. never struck a silver $5 coin.

There were $5 silver certificate bills but none are dated 1927.

Please check again and post a new, separate question. No US $5 bills were printed in 1927

The terms "Circulated" and "Uncirculated" apply to any coin or bill, not just silver certificates. Simply put, a piece of money is uncirculated if it's never been spent in commerce. A coin or bill can be uncirculated if it's received from a bank or from the US Mint (coins) without passing through any other hands. As soon as it's been used to buy something, by definition it's circulated - somewhat like an auto becoming a used car as soon as it's driven off the dealer's lot.

Terminology and grading can become sticky if the item is received after a single use. In these cases graders may assign a description of "almost uncirculated" along with a number between 50 and 59 that further refines its condition based on whether the coin or bill experienced any damage during its limited time in circulation.

No. Some higher denomination bills have color-shifting ink with a tiny amount of metal in it, but no gold.

The series 1917 "George Washington" United States Note is not a Silver Certificate. There were no "Silver Certificate" notes printed with the series 1917. The series of "Silver Certificate" notes used during that time had the date of 1899 or 1923. The 1899 Silver Certificate had a "Black Eagle", and the 1923 Silver Certificates had "George Washington" on the front, respectively. The 1917 "George Washington" United States Note have five different set of signatures. These signatures are signed by the Register of the United States and the Treasurer of the United States. They are Teehee & Burke, Elliott & Burke, Burke & Elliott, Elliott & White, and Speelman & White. The values for these notes vary depending on who signed the notes, the condition of the note, and the grade of the note.

The US didn't print any bills dated 1939. Please check again and post a new, separate question.

In the 19th century the U.S. issued fractional paper currency in denominations as small as 3 cents. If you have a small bill with the denomination 10 cents, please post a more thorough description.

However if your "paper dime" looks like a regular modern dime it's just a photocopy or novelty item.

It technically never stopped circulating and it hasn't officially been withdrawn. However the last bills were printed in 1945* and a presidential order issued in July 1969 suspended distribution of all denominations higher than $100. After 40+ years any that were still circulating have either worn out, been recovered when deposited in a bank, or taken out of circulation by collectors.

(*) All were dated 1934 though.

There's no 2005 $500 bill. The last high-denomination US bills were printed in 1945 and all carried a 1934 series date.

The first $2 bills at the national level were U.S. Notes issued in 1862. Private banks may have issued their own at an earlier date, however.

The $2 denomination makes a lot of sense in a decimal currency system because 2 is a factor of 10, and having denominations that correspond to exact fractions and multiples of the basic unit simplifies change-making. Most countries that use decimal currency have 2-unit bills or coins, such as $2 in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, £2 in Britain, and €2 in the EU. In those countries the denomination circulates widely and regularly.

In the US $2 bills circulated at first, but during the late 19th century were heavily used as payment for horse racing bets and, uh, "sexual services" where $2 was the going rate in those pre-inflation days. Many people came to associate them with crime and refused to spend them so the denomination fell out of favor. Even today some people mistakenly believe that the bills are (pick one) no longer in circulation, used only in crime, or are "cursed", all of which are false.