A Brief History of U.S. Currency

FUN FACTS ABOUT U.S. CURRENCY12 The highest dollar bill ever printed – the $100,000 note -was never put into public use. It was printed only during a period of 22 days (December 18, 1934 – January 9, 1935). It had the picture of President Woodrow Wilson on it, and its only use was among Federal Reserve banks. Your house may be made out of paper bills! When bills are taken out of use, the individual Federal Reserve banks shred them and sell them to contractors who then used it for the production of building materials such as insulation or roofing shingles. The $10 bill has the shortest lifespan of any of the different values. To compare, the $10 estimated life time of a $100 bill is about 18 years, a $1 bill almost five years, but a $10 bill lasts a mere 3.6 years. According to the federal government, it takes over 4,000 double folds (forward, then backward) to tear a note. 94% of paper currency carries fecal matter. There is $1.2 trillion in coins and paper money circulating in the U.S. It costs 5 cents to produce every $1 bill. $1