Silver Certificates

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  • Mgderf

    Grandmaster
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    43   0   0
    May 30, 2009
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    Lafayette
    Any Ingoer's have any insight on silver certificates?
    I received one in change last week at a local gas station.

    Mine is a $5.00 bill. It had been folded previously, but is still in very good shape, especially considering it's a series 1934!

    Not really interested in selling (unless it's worth enough to fund a new gun LOL), but would like to know about what it might be worth.
    Sorry, no pics.
     

    Phase2

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    Dec 9, 2011
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    Don't know what it's collectable value is offhand, but once upon a time, it could be exchanged for 5 oz of silver. Silver is currently going for $15/oz. Which means that inflation has eaten $70 of the $75 original value since 1934. Sigh...
     

    Phase2

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    Dec 9, 2011
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    Found the following at an auction company I deal with:

    $5 and $10 Silver Certificates, 1934 and 1953
    As with most $1 Silver Certificates, most circulated $5 and $10 Silver Certificates only carry a small premium over face value, ranging from 10% to 30%. Uncirculated $5 and $10 Silver Certificates carry a larger premium, depending on the issue and the grade. There are several significantly scarcer and even rare varieties in these series, however, including the 1933 $10 Silver Certificate, the 1953-B $5 Silver Certificate Star Note, and others, and most Star notes from these series carry some premium (ranging from small to large) over the regular notes. Again, please refer to the Standard Guide to Small Size U.S. Paper Money (1928 to date), by Dean Oakes and John Schwartz, for more information.
     

    CPT Nervous

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    17   0   0
    Mar 7, 2012
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    The Southern Bend
    I used to find stuff like this all the time when I worked at Brink's. I always carried cash, and would ask the store or bank managers if I could swap notes. They almost always let me. They didn't care, as long as everyone's vault were balanced.

    It's sad though, as most of these bills were probably part of a collection that was either raided or bequeathed. Grandkids couldn't appreciate the value of these old bank notes, and just spent them.

    I have a 1928 $20 bill, and a 1934 $10 bill in my collection that I found that way. Not super valuable, but as a collector, I just really like old paper currency.
     

    snorko

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    361   0   0
    Apr 3, 2008
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    Evansville, IN
    Don't know what it's collectable value is offhand, but once upon a time, it could be exchanged for 5 oz of silver. Silver is currently going for $15/oz. Which means that inflation has eaten $70 of the $75 original value since 1934. Sigh...

    It could have been exchanged for $5.00 worth of silver.

    In 1934 silver was around $9.10/oz so you could buy .545 troy ounces.

    Current spot is $15.07/oz so you can buy .331 troy ounces.

    So based on the silver basis, your $5.00 in 1934 is worth $3.05.
     

    Greffy

    Plinker
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    0   0   0
    Feb 20, 2019
    59
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    Los Angeles County
    I'd like to find some of the bills with the red ink for the US Treasury seal and red numerals for the serial numbers. They say 'U S Note'.
    My understanding is that they were printed on the direct order of President Kennedy and bypassed The Federal Reserve system.
    I dare say those bills are less commonly found anymore than Silver Certificates.
     

    Spear Dane

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    3   0   0
    Sep 4, 2015
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    Kokomo area
    I know it's not even legal tender anymore, but I'm also pretty sure it's still worth more than $5.00
    __57.jpg
     

    CPT Nervous

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    17   0   0
    Mar 7, 2012
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    The Southern Bend
    I'd like to find some of the bills with the red ink for the US Treasury seal and red numerals for the serial numbers. They say 'U S Note'.
    My understanding is that they were printed on the direct order of President Kennedy and bypassed The Federal Reserve system.
    I dare say those bills are less commonly found anymore than Silver Certificates.


    I have a few $2 notes with the red seals. Different backs, too.
     

    KittySlayer

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    4   0   0
    Jan 29, 2013
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    Northeast IN
    It's sad though, as most of these bills were probably part of a collection that was either raided or bequeathed. Grandkids couldn't appreciate the value of these old bank notes, and just spent them.
    Even if these bills didn’t have any monetary value (premium over face) you would think these heathens would attach some sentimental value to them.
     

    thunderchicken

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    Feb 26, 2010
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    Indianapolis
    When I was a kid I heard mom refrence silver certificates. But haven't heard of them since. So ok, I see it was US currency based on silver. Why wouldn't it be legal tender anymore?
     

    Trigger Time

    Air guitar master
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    204   3   0
    Aug 26, 2011
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    SOUTH of Zombie city
    When I was a kid I heard mom refrence silver certificates. But haven't heard of them since. So ok, I see it was US currency based on silver. Why wouldn't it be legal tender anymore?
    Its is still legal tender. You can spend it at face value but its collectable value is more than face now. When it makes its way back to the federal reserve they will destroy it as outdated currency.
     

    gregkl

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    Apr 8, 2012
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    If you into collecting for the hobby of collecting, then by all means do it. But in the not too distant future, everything old is going to be just "something old". Most U.S. paper money is worth little more than face value and wheat back pennies are worth about $0.01.

    And coin and stamp collectors are dying off by the thousands these days. Later generations for the most part don't care about "stuff". Sure, you will have a few that collect that kind of stuff, but not enough to drive the market up.

    There are flea markets all over the country overstuffed with antiques, collectibles, old appliances, furniture, tools, etc. And for the most part, they sit there and collect dust.

    It's only a matter of time before the millennial generation says; "what are we going to do with all this junk? Is there a way to recycle it?"

    :twocents: Regular, not wheat back.:)
     

    KittySlayer

    Grandmaster
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    4   0   0
    Jan 29, 2013
    6,473
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    Northeast IN
    If you into collecting for the hobby of collecting, then by all means do it. But in the not too distant future, everything old is going to be just "something old". Most U.S. paper money is worth little more than face value and wheat back pennies are worth about $0.01.

    And coin and stamp collectors are dying off by the thousands these days. Later generations for the most part don't care about "stuff". Sure, you will have a few that collect that kind of stuff, but not enough to drive the market up.

    There are flea markets all over the country overstuffed with antiques, collectibles, old appliances, furniture, tools, etc. And for the most part, they sit there and collect dust.

    It's only a matter of time before the millennial generation says; "what are we going to do with all this junk? Is there a way to recycle it?"

    :twocents: Regular, not wheat back.:)
    Interesting observation. Friend of mine took over his father’s retail coin business some years ago. His focus is now more on trading gold and silver by weight more so than intrinsic value. He still does both but the emphasis has shifted.
     

    Mr Evilwrench

    Quantum Mechanic
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    0   0   0
    Aug 18, 2011
    11,560
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    Carmel
    Some of the stores with those coinstar machines will let you buy the bags of coins for FRNs. This can be a win-win. The FRNs are easier for the store to deal with, and there are known to have been big jars of old coins cleared out of Grandpa's closet and dumped in the coinstar instead of counted. Some of these old jars are rich with silver dimes and quarters, wheat pennies, buffalo nickels. Probably not lottery winner money, but you can take a few bux off the top from time to time.
     

    Hkindiana

    Master
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    8   0   0
    Sep 19, 2010
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    Southern Hills
    Some of the stores with those coinstar machines will let you buy the bags of coins for FRNs. This can be a win-win. The FRNs are easier for the store to deal with, and there are known to have been big jars of old coins cleared out of Grandpa's closet and dumped in the coinstar instead of counted. Some of these old jars are rich with silver dimes and quarters, wheat pennies, buffalo nickels. Probably not lottery winner money, but you can take a few bux off the top from time to time.

    Actually, the coinstar machines REJECT the silver coins. I can't tell you how many silver dimes (including mercurys) and quarters that I have found in the reject bins of coinstar machines. I agree that the coin bags could be a treasure trove of old pennies and nickels, but don't expect ANY silver.
     
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