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***Auction Highlight*** Rare 1863 $5 Demand Note FR-63B Ty 2 Seal Grades vf+ (fc)

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:25.00 USD Estimated At:850.00 - 1,700.00 USD
***Auction Highlight*** Rare 1863 $5 Demand Note FR-63B Ty 2 Seal Grades vf+ (fc)
***Auction Highlight*** Rare 1863 $5 Demand Note FR-63B Ty 2 Seal Grades vf+. Only about 200 Still In Existence Offered is a worthy example of one our nation's first "Greenbacks." This 1863 $5 Demand Note was produced by the American Bank Note Company using a patented steel plate process developed over decades of producing bank notes for state chartered banks. The statue pictured at left on the face is Freedom, by Thomas Crawford, which sits atop the United States Capitol. Founding father Alexander Hamilton is portrayed in the bottom right corner on the face.These Demand Notes were the first widely circulated, federally issued notes since the Continental Currency notes of the late 18th century. Each example is hand signed by two Treasury officials for the register of the Treasury and treasurer of the United States. In contrast to Interest-Bearing Notes, Demand Notes were made in lower denominations for widespread popular distribution. As these bore no interest they were in effect a free loan to the government. The $5 (as here), $10, and $20 values gave them wide appeal.The backs of Demand Notes were printed in green ink, quickly giving rise to the term greenback, although this was more widely applied to the later Legal Tender Notes issued in far greater quantities. Today in popular parlance, green is the "color of moneyThe first Demand Notes were paid out in August 1861 and used to pay government salaries in Washington. Soon thereafter, notes were given to Union soldiers, defense contractors, and others to whom the government was obligated. This form of payment was not welcomed by the recipients, who preferred "hard money" in the form of coins. At the time silver and gold coins were readily available, a situation that would continue until late December when gold coins began to be hoarded and could be purchased only at a premium, followed by the disappearance of silver coins in the late spring of 1862.