History of the dollar

The US currency is today the reserve world and is the most common. Nevertheless, few know about its origin, but it is quite interesting. The history of the dollar has more than one century, and the name itself is much older than the United States of America.

According to the official version, the word "dollar" comes from Joachimtalerov - coins, which were minted in the Czech town of Joachimshtal. This city was in the kingdom, which belonged to the Habsburg dynasty. Later Joachimtaler began to be called simply a thaler. These coins have been circulating in many European countries and gradually migrated to the New World.

It should be noted that the word meaning now the American currency, is mentioned even before the first settlers reached the shores of the American continent. For example, in several plays of Shakespeare, heroes are calculated in dollars, so there is no complete certainty about the appearance of this currency in America.

The history of the dollar is so confused that scientists are still puzzling over the resolution of this historical paradox. For a long time in the territory of America were walking German thalers, British pounds, Spanish silver reales. It was silver coins that were called dollars. After the North American States became an independent state, a new currency was needed, quite different from the currency of other states, especially those who interfered with the proclamation of independence.

During the Continental Congress of the United States, held on June 6, 1785, a decision was made on a new currency, the dollar. This proposal was presented by Thomas Jefferson, who in fact becomes the father of this national currency. From this moment begins the history of the US dollar, which will soon be 230 years old. In the city of Philadelphia in 1792 a mint was created , which began the coinage of the first American coins in 1794. Only in 1863 began to print paper money.

Interesting Facts:

The US issued the first banknotes, which were worth $ 5, 10, and $ 20. The following year, there were also one-dollar bills. They were called "greenbacks" or "green backs", since they were green on the reverse side. And now the word "buck" is often used in popular speech. In Russia, the slang word "greens", also taken from the same expression, took root.

The history of the dollar is of great interest for counterfeiters who, with an enviable regularity, forge this currency. The US government annually spends huge sums of money fighting these "figures".

To his appearance, American paper money is due to a Russian descendant, the artist Sergei Makronovsky, who offered the design of these bills.

Until now, most banknotes have the original appearance. Only in 1996 this design was slightly changed in order to better protect against fakes.

The history of the US dollar is the history of America, depicted on bills of various denominations. The images of the White House, the Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial and the Philadelphia Independence Hall placed on them are the buildings in which the most important events took place in the history of this country. Americans have been familiar with the history of the dollar since childhood, because their life depends entirely on the thickness of the bundle of these banknotes, since earning money is the main task of a 100% American.

Let us give further interesting facts. The US prints its entire currency only in two factories. Annually, they make a total of 35 million banknotes of different denominations. The cost of each bill is about 6 cents. In the US, only one-third of all cash dollars is on hand.