When it comes to silver certificates, there are a couple of series that are more sought after than others. When it comes to designs, there are paper currency collectors out there that know which notes to go after. When it comes to highly sought after silver certificates with beautiful designs, there is only one series you can really narrow it down to. With help from authors Q. David Bowers and David M. Sundman, we will look at a note that has found its way into the top ten of Whitman Publishing’s 100 Greatest American Currency Notes and with no question as to why.
#7 – History Instructing Youth $1 “Educational Note,” Series of 1896
The $1 Silver Certificate Series of 1896 is admired mostly for its beauty. On the face of the note, we see goddess with her pupil looking across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. The scene before them features the nation’s capital with the Capitol, Washington Monument, and more. The border around the note features many names of prominent and well-known Americans including Fulton, Calhoun, Clay, Jackson, Adams, Jefferson, Washington, Franklin, Hamilton, Perry, Marshall, Webster, Morse, Hawthorne, Bancroft, Grant, Farragut, Emerson, Longfellow, Sherman, Lincoln, Irving, and Cooper.
The notes were printed with the word tranquility depicted on the Constitution with just the single l spelling. Preferred spelling in the 1890s was with tranquillity, and so the Bureau of Engraving and Printing was criticized for the “error.” However, it was found that the original spelling in the Constitution was that of tranquility and so it was protected.
In 1960, the historic market value for this note in a Gem Crisp Uncirculated Condition was $60.00. By this publication (2006), it rose to $3,200.00.
