United States ten-dollar bill

Ten dollars
(United States)
Value $10
Width 156 mm
Height 66.3 mm
Weight Approx. 1 g
Security features Security thread, EURion constellation, Watermark, Color shifting ink, Microprinting
Paper type Cotton-linen
Years of printing 1861–present
Obverse
Design Alexander Hamilton
Design date 2006
Reverse
Design U.S. Treasury
Design date 2006

The United States ten-dollar bill ($10) is a denomination of U.S. currency. The obverse of the bill features the portrait of Alexander Hamilton, who served as the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 1789–95. The reverse features the U.S. Treasury Building. All $10 bills issued today are Federal Reserve Notes.

As of December 2013, the average life of a $10 bill is 4.5 years, or about 54 months, before it is replaced due to wear.[1] Ten-dollar bills are delivered by Federal Reserve Banks in yellow straps.

The source of the face on the $10 bill is John Trumbull’s 1805 portrait of Hamilton that belongs to the portrait collection of New York City Hall. The $10 bill is unique in that it is the only U.S. paper currency in circulation in which the portrait faces to the left (the $100,000 bill featured a portrait of Woodrow Wilson facing to the left, but was used only for intra-government transactions). It is also features one of two non-presidents on currently issued U.S. bills, the other being Benjamin Franklin on the $100 bill. Hamilton is one of only four people featured on U.S. paper currency (1861 to the present) who were not born in the continental United States; he was from the West Indies. The others were Albert Gallatin, Switzerland ($500 1862/63 Legal Tender); George Meade, Spain ($1,000 1890/91 Treasury Note); and Robert Morris, England ($1,000 1862/63 Legal Tender; $10 1878/80 Silver Certificate).

In 2015, the Treasury Secretary announced that the obverse portrait of Hamilton would be replaced by the portrait of an as yet undecided woman, starting in 2020.[2] However, due to the surging popularity of Hamilton, a hit Broadway musical based on Hamilton's life, in 2016 this decision was reversed and Hamilton will remain on the $10 bill.[3]

Large size note history

(approximately 7.4218 × 3.125 in ≅ 189 × 79 mm)

1863 $10 Legal Tender note
1880 $10 Legal Tender
Series 1880 $10 silver certificate.
Series 1901 $10 Legal Tender depicting military explorers Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and an American bison.
1914 $10 Federal Reserve Note

Small size note history

Series 1928 $10 Gold Certificate
1934 A Federal Reserve $10 Note
The first 1953 $10 Silver Certificate printed (Smithsonian).

(6.14 × 2.61 in ≅ 156 × 66 mm)

Rejected redesign

On June 17, 2015, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew announced that a woman's portrait would be featured on a redesigned ten-dollar bill by 2020. The Department of Treasury was seeking the public's input on who should appear on the new bill during the design phase.[10]

Removal of Hamilton was controversial. Many believed that Hamilton, as the First Secretary of the Treasury, should remain on US Currency in some form, all the while acknowledging that US Currency was long overdue to feature a female historical figure – names that have been raised include Eleanor Roosevelt, Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony and Rosa Parks. This led to the Treasury Department stating that Hamilton would remain on the bill in some way. The $10 bill was chosen because it is scheduled for a regular security redesign but that is a years long process.[11] The next redesigned ten-dollar bill will be the first U.S. note to incorporate tactile features to assist those with visual disabilities.[12]

On April 20, 2016, it was announced that Alexander Hamilton would remain the primary face on the $10 bill, due in part to the sudden popularity of the first Treasury Secretary after the success of the musical Hamilton on Broadway. It was simultaneously announced that Andrew Jackson's likeness on the $20 bill would be replaced to feature Harriet Tubman.[13] The new design for the reverse of the bill will feature the heroes of the Women's Suffrage Movement, including Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul, Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Lucretia Mott and the March of 1913 for female equality.[14]

See also

References

  1. "FRB: How long is the lifespan of U.S. paper money?".
  2. "Secretary Lew Announces Historic Decision To Feature A Woman On The Newly Redesigned Ten Dollar Note" (Press release). U.S. Treasury Department. June 17, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
  3. "Change for a $20: Tubman Ousts Jackson". The New York Times. 21 April 2016.
  4. "Currency NOTES" (PDF). Bureau of engraving and Printing.
  5. Fodor's Washington DC. Random House. 1991. p. 76. American Security Bank likes to boast in its commercials that it's "Right on the money"—"the money" in this case being a $10 bill. If you look on the back of one you'll see the Treasury Building and to its right the tiny American Security bank building.
  6. "Trademark search details for "Right on the money"". Boliven. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  7. "USPaperMoney.Info: Series 1990 $10".
  8. "USPaperMoney.Info: Series 1999 $10".
  9. "USPaperMoney.Info: Series 2004A $10".
  10. Calmes, Jackie (June 17, 2015). "Woman’s Portrait Will Appear on the $10 Bill". The New York Times.
  11. "Woman 10 bill redesign update". CNN. 2016.
  12. "Meaningful Access White Paper" (PDF). B of Engraving and Printing. 2013.
  13. "Women Currency Harriet Tubman". The New York Times. 2016.
  14. "The New $10 Note". US Department of the Treasury. 2016.

Sources

External links

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