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50 Cents 'Fractional Currency' - 3rd issue
| Issuer | United States Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1863 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Cents (0.50 USD) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | 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 | ISSUED UNDER ACT OF MARCH 3ᴰ 1863. THIS NOTE IS EXCHANGEABLE FOR UNITED STATES NOTES by the Assistant Treasurers and designated depositaries of the UNITED STATES in sums not less than THREE DOLLARS. Receivable in payment of all dues to the UNITED STATES LESS THAN FIVE DOLLARS EXCEPT CUSTOMS. ENGRAVED & PRINTED AT THE TREASURY. |
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| Variants | P#112a - without letters overprint on front P#112b - overprint "1" and "a" left on front near guilloche P#112c - overprint "1" on front P#112d - overprint "a" on front |
| Comments |
Third Issue Fractional Currency was the first American paper money printed entirely by the newly established Bureau of Engraving and Printing, which had only wrested production away from private contractors — chiefly the National Bank Note Company — in 1862 after concerns about security and cost. This 50-cent denomination was the highest value in the fractional series, introduced specifically because the near-total disappearance of coins from circulation, driven by hoarding following the suspension of specie payments in December 1861, had paralyzed small commercial transactions across the Union.
Third Issue notes are distinguished from their predecessors by the addition of a red fiber embedded in the paper — an early anti-counterfeiting measure that proved easier to describe than to replicate.