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United States fifty-dollar bill
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2004 Federal Reserve Note - Obverse
2004 Federal Reserve Note - Reverse
The United States fifty-dollar bill ($50) is a denomination of United States currency. U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant is currently featured on the obverse, while the U.S. Capital is featured on the reverse. All $50 bills issued today are Federal Reserve Notes.
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing says the "average life" of a $50 bill in circulation is 55 months before it is replaced due to wear. Approximately 5% of all notes printed today are $50 bills. They are delivered by Federal Reserve Banks in brown straps.
A fifty dollar bill is sometimes called a Grant based on the use of Ulysses S. Grant's portrait on the bill.
Large size note history
(approximately 7.4218 × 3.125 in ≅ 189 × 79 mm)
- 1861: Three-year fifty dollar Interest Bearing Notes were issued that paid a cent of interest per day. These notes were not primarily designed to circulate, and were payable to the original purchaser of the dollar bill. The obverse of the note featured a Bald Eagle.
- 1862: The first circulating $50 bill was issued.
- 1863: Both one and two year Interest Bearing Notes were issued that paid 5% interest. The one-year Interest Bearing Notes featured a vignette of Alexander Hamilton to the left and an allegorical figure representing loyalty to the right. The two-year notes featured allegorical figures of loyalty, and justice.
- 1864: Compound Interest Treasury Notes were issued that were intended to circulate for three years and paid 6% interest compounded semi-annually. The obverse is similar to the 1863 one-year Interest Bearing Note.
- 1865: Three-year Interest Bearing Notes were issued again with a slightly different Bald Eagle and border design on the obverse.
- 1869: A new $50 United States Note was issued with a portrait of Henry Clay on the right and an allegorical figure holding a laurel branch on the left of the obverse.
- 1870: Fifty Dollar National Gold Bank Notes were issued specifically for payment in gold coin by 2 national gold banks. The obverse featured vignettes of George Washington crossing the Delaware River and at Valley Forge; the reverse featured a vignette of U.S. gold coins.
Series of 1891 Silver Certificate
- 1874: Another new $50 United States Note was issued with a portrait of Benjamin Franklin on the left and allegorical figure of Lady Liberty on the right of the obverse.
- 1878: The first $50 Silver Certificate was issued with a portrait of Edward Everett. The reverse was printed in black ink.
- 1880: The 1878 Silver Certificate was slightly revised.
- 1882: The first $50 Gold Certificate with a portrait of Silas Wright was issued. The reverse was printed in orange ink and featured a Bald Eagle perched atop an American flag.
- 1891: The obverse of the $50 Silver Certificate was slightly revised and the reverse was completely changed.
- 1891: The $50 Treasury or "Coin Note" was issued and given for government purchases of silver bullion from the silver mining industry. The note featured a portrait of William H. Seward.
- 1913: A new $50 Gold Certificate with a portrait of Ulysses Grant was issued. The style of the area below Grant's portrait was later used on small-sized notes.
- 1914: The first $50 Federal Reserve Note was issued with a portrait of Ulysses S. Grant on the obverse and an allegorical figure of Panama between a merchant and battle ship on the reverse.
- 1918: Federal Reserve Bank Notes (not to be confused with Federal Reserve Notes) were issued by the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis. The obverse was similar to the 1914 Federal Reserve Notes, except for large wording in the middle of the bill and a portrait with no border on the left side of the bill. The note was an obligation of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank and could only be redeemed there.
Small size note history
(6.14 × 2.61 in ≅ 156 × 66 mm)
- 1929: Under series of 1928, all U.S. currency was changed to its current size. All variations of the $50 bill would carry the same portrait of Ulysses S. Grant, same border design on the obverse, and the same reverse with a vignette of the U.S. Capitol. The $50 bill was issued as a Federal Reserve Note with a green seal and serial numbers and as a Gold Certificate with a golden seal and serial numbers.
- 1933: As an emergency response to the Great Depression, additional money was pumped into the American economy through Federal Reserve Bank Notes issued under series of 1929. This was the only small-sized $50 bill that had a different border design on the obverse. The serial numbers and seal on it were brown.
- 1934: The redeemable in gold clause was removed from Federal Reserve Notes due to the U.S. withdrawing from the gold standard.
- 1950: Many minor aspects on the obverse of the $50 Federal Reserve Note were changed. Most noticeably, the treasury seal, gray word FIFTY, and the Federal Reserve Seal were made smaller; also, the Federal Reserve seal had spikes added around it.
Series of 1929 Federal Reserve Bank Note
- 1966: WILL PAY TO THE BEARER ON DEMAND was removed from the obverse and IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the reverse of the series 1963 A $50 Federal Reserve Note. Also, the obligation was changed to its current wording, THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER FOR ALL DEBTS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE.
- 1969: The $50 bill began using the new treasury seal with wording in English instead of Latin.
- 1991: The first new-age anti-counterfeiting measures were introduced under series 1990 with microscopic printing around Grant's portrait and a plastic security strip on the left side of the bill.
- October 27, 1997: Major design changes were implemented under series 1996 to further deter counterfeiters. Included were an enlarged and off-center portrait, an enlarged and updated view of the U.S. Capitol on the reverse, a security thread which glows yellow under ultraviolet light, a numeric 50 which shifts color from black to green when tilted, and a watermark of Grant. Also, for those with vision limitations, a large dark 50 was added to the bottom left corner of the reverse. The Federal Reserve seal was also changed to a unified Federal Reserve System seal and an additional prefix letter was added to the beginning of the bill's serial number.
- September 28, 2004: A revised design was implemented with the first use of multiple colors since the 1905 $20 Gold Certificate. Around the new border-less portrait of Ulysses Grant appears a subtle, stylized blue and red background image of the American Flag. A small silver-blue star was also added to the lower right of Grant's portrait. All previous series 1996 security features were included, although the color-shifting numeric 50 now shifts from copper to green. The oval border and fine lines surrounding the U.S. Capitol on the reverse have been removed and replaced with sky and clouds. The new design also seems to have the "EURion constellation" on the back to prevent photocopying of the bill.
- 2005: U.S. Representative John Kline introduced legislation to replace Grant's image on the $50 bill with an image of President Ronald Reagan.
References
- Wilhite, Robert (1998). Standard Catalog of United States Paper Money (17th ed). Krause Pubns Inc. ISBN 0873416538.
- Hudgeons, Thomas (2005). The Official Blackbook Price Guide to U.S. Paper Money 2006, Edition #38. House of Collectibles. ISBN 1400048451.
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