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5 Cents 'Fractional Currency' - 2nd issue
| Issuer | United States Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1863 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Dollar (1785-date) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | EXCHANGEABLE FOR UNITED STATES NOTES BY THE Assistant Treasurers and Designated Depositories for the U.S. in sums not less than THREE DOLLARS. Receivable in payment of all dues to the United States less than Five Dollars EXCEPT CUSTOMS 5 5 |
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| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Violet fibers embedded in the paper; bronze-colored oval surround on the obverse and large bronze numeral on the reverse, both serving as anti-counterfeiting measures specific to the second issue. |
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| Comments |
The Second Issue fractional notes were Washington's direct response to a public relations disaster. First Issue notes had been printed on plain paper and were being counterfeited almost immediately. The bronze overprint — applied over the face of the note — was the Treasury's countermeasure, intended to make photographic reproduction impractical with the technology of 1863. It worked well enough that the Second Issue ran without the forgery problems that plagued its predecessor.
Fractional currency existed because the public was hoarding every coin it could find, silver having essentially vanished from circulation once the war's outcome looked uncertain.