Andrew Jackson, Harriet Tubman is coming for
you. That’s right, it’s looking like she will
be replacing him on the American twenty-dollar bill y’all. Ok, it probably won’t happen until at least
2030, but it’s happening dad gomit. I’m Mr. Beat
And yes in this video we’re going to look at money. This is fake money, of course. I couldn’t afford to show you the real Federal
Reserve Notes. Yep, I photocopied these at school. I’ve never actually tried to spend it. (scoffs) But yeah, we’re looking at American currency. Real American currency, well real American
currency isn’t even on paper. It’s made out of fabric composed of 75%
cotton and 25% linen. It’s also really hard to counterfeit. Almost every single part of American currency
is there to make it difficult to copy. The United States Department of Treasury spends
billions each year producing it, and it is quite an elaborate process. Oh don’t get me wrong, many still try to
counterfeit American currency, and in fact many are still successful. The Department of Treasury estimates that
possibly $200 million in counterfeit bills are currently in circulation. That would mean that about 1 Federal Reserve
Note out of every 4,000 out there right now is counterfeit. Mmmhmmm, that dollar in your pocket right
now might be a counterfeit, George. You might want to check that out. Meh, almost every store would probably still
accept it, anyway. After all, it got there in the first place. But hold up. What about the people on this currency? Who ARE these people? Do they think they’re a big deal? Why yes, they ARE a big deal. Most of them were American Presidents. However, others are just important people
in American history, and some of them featured on different currencies over the years may
surprise you. The Secretary of the Treasury is in charge
of selecting people, and there’s no law saying that the people on the currency have
to always be the same. In this video, I’m looking at every person
on American currency, and I’ll give some basic information about them, although I’m
sure you’re already familiar with most of them. First though, I’ve got another great sponsor
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the link in the description of this video.Thanks to Bright Cellars for sponsoring this video. Now, I don’t mean to brag, but let’s start
with a currency that I actually have a lot of- the penny. The penny, worth one cent, features the 16th
President, Abraham Lincoln. Most historians today say that Lincoln is
the greatest President in American history. He’s been on the penny since 1909 to honor
his 100th birthday. Lincoln was the first president featured on
an American coin. The nickel, worth five cents, features the
Declaration of Independence writer, Founding Father dude, and 3rd President Thomas Jefferson. He’s been on the nickel since 1938. The dime, worth ten cents, features the 32nd
President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He’s been on the dime since 1946, the year
after he died. And the dime is sooo appropriate for FDR,
since he founded the March of Dimes, a nonprofit organization with the goal of improving the
health of mothers and babies. The quarter, worth 25 cents, features an obscure
Founding Father by the name of George Washington. Ok, I joke, of course. Washington is kind of a big deal, being the
much beloved 1st President and also hero of the American Revolution. He’s been on the quarter since his 200th
birthday in 1932. The half dollar, worth, uh...half a dollar,
features the 35th President, John F. Kennedy. He’s been on it since 1964, the year after
he died. The half dollar is the largest coin currently
produced, but there aren’t many in circulation since most Americans don’t use them much. And now it’s time for the bills. Here’s a real one actually. The dollar, worth one dollar. Ok, I’m gonna go ahead and stop saying how
much they're worth now. Anyway, the dollar also features the much
beloved 1st President George Washington. He’s been on it since 1869. The $1 bill is the second most common Federal
Reserve note in circulation. You probably have one somewhere I bet. I hope so. Now, the two-dollar bill is much less used. It also features the 3rd President, Thomas
Jefferson, and he’s been on it since 1869 as well. Because Americans think they’re rare, they
often collect two-dollar bills, but they’re surprisingly not as rare as you would think. The five-dollar bill also features 16th President
Abraham Lincoln, and he’s been on it since 1914. So far it’s been all Presidents on currency,
but this next fella was never President. Alexander Hamilton is on the ten-dollar bill. Many of the young folks know all about him
through the Hamilton musical, which is kind of weird, but yeah he was a Founding Father
and the 1st Treasury Secretary so I guess that’s quite appropriate that he’s on
currency. He’s been on it since 1929. Andrew Jackson used to be on the ten-dollar
bill, but as I mentioned earlier now he’s on the twenty-dollar bill. Jackson was the 7th President and is arguably
the most controversial one on currency that’s currently in circulation. There’s no denying his huge impact on American
history, though. He’s been on the twenty also since 1929. The fifty-dollar bill features the 18th President,
Ulysses Grant, and he’s been on it as long as Lincoln’s been on the five-dollar bill,
since 1914. And now, it’s all about the Benjamins. Yeah I have no Benjamins. Benjamin Franklin has also been on the 100-dollar
bill since 1914. Franklin was also never a President but still
a big freaking deal in American history, being a Founding Father, but additionally just a
major American Enlightenment figure who accomplished and influenced so much in colonial America. Oh, and the $100 bill surprisingly is the
most common Federal Reserve note in circulation currently. Now, the United States no longer issues bills
in larger denominations than $100. It just doesn’t make sense given...ya know...technology
but also inflation. But, they are still legal tender and can still
be in circulation. The Treasury Department officially discontinued
the $500 bill in 1969. If you happened to actually have a $500 bill
and wanted to, I don’t know, pay with groceries with it, you indeed could, although that’d
be silly since it’d actually be worth AT LEAST hundreds of dollars more since they
are so rare. The latest version of the $500 bill features
the 25th President William McKinley, but he was only printed on it for a few years. The Treasury Department also officially discontinued
the $1,000 bill in 1969. The latest version of it features the 22nd
and 24th President, Grover Cleveland. A grocery store could also accept it but please
don’t spend it if you have it. Sell it, man. Only 165,372 of these bills with Cleveland
on it are still in existence. If they are in decent shape, they are not
worth a thousand, they are worth THOUSANDS. And yes, there are actually $5,000 bills,
$10,000 bills and $100,000 bills out there. The Treasury Department also officially discontinued
the $5,000 bill in 1969. It features the 4th President and Father of
the Constitution James Madison. Fewer than 400 of these notes are believed
to still be out there. Today, one would easily sell for $30,000. Uh, yeah, if you have one please don’t spend
it on groceries. The Treasury Department also officially discontinued
the $10,000 bill in 1969. It features the U.S. Senator, 25th Secretary
Treasury and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Salmon P. Chase. No one knows exactly how many $10,000 bills
are out there, but at least one site estimates you could probably get $140,000 for one in
decent condition. The $100,000 bill was actually just a gold
certificate that never was issued for regular, public use. The Treasury Department just created them
for official transactions between Federal Reserve Banks. Only 42,000 bills ever were printed, and even
today collectors can’t legally own one but if they did they’d instantly be a millionaire. Oh, and it features WILSOOOOOON! Yeah, the 28th President, Woodrow Wilson. Well hold up, what about people who used to
be on American currency no longer around? Well, I’m not going to go through them all
because that would take too long, but here are a few highlights. Let’s start with Presidents. All of the dead Presidents are on $1 coins. Also, John Quincy Adams used to be on the
$500 bill. James Garfield was on the $5 bill and $20
gold certificate. Benjamin Harrison was on the $5 bill for a
bit. William McKinley was also on the $10 bill. George Washington was on a bunch of different
currencies. So was Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James
Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses Grant, and Grover Cleveland. Henry Clay may never have been President,
but he was on the $50 bill at one point. Other Senators once on currency include Daniel
Webster on the $10, Edward Everett on the $50 bill, John Sherman also on the $50, Thomas
Hart Benton on the $100, and Charles Sumner on the $500. Lots of war heroes have been featured on currency,
like Winfield Scott Hancock on the $2 bill, Stephen Decatur on the $20, Winfield Scott
on the $100, and William Tecumseh Sherman on the $500. Legendary Supreme Court Justice John Marshall,
aka Lil’ John, was on the $20 and $500 bills. Native Americans have made appearances on
currency. Probably the most well known is the Buffalo
Nickel, which features a portrait of a man named Iron Tail, a member of the Oglala Lakota
Sioux tribe. There was also the Sioux Chief Running Antelope,
featured on the $5 bill. Sacagawea, who aided the explorers Lewis and
Clark when they traveled the continent, was on the $1 coin for a few years. Heck, Lewis and Clark were also both on currency
at one point. Other women on currency include Martha Washington
on the $1 bill, Susan B. Anthony on the $1 coin, and that’s basically it unfortunately,
unless you count Helen Keller on the back of the Alabama quarter or Pocahontas on the
back of the $20 bill with a bunch of other people. Now, well this is all fun and stuff, today,
the vast majority of Americans don’t even use cash to make purchases in any given week. Especially younger folks. I don’t even carry cash around with me anymore...unless
it’s photocopied. That might come in handy. And with apps like Venmo and the Cash app
and with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Dogecoin and dozens of others, it does seem physical
currencies in general are increasingly becoming obsolete. But dangit, they sure are cool. In other words, I just made this video to
prove to you how cool I am for having an extremely modest coin collection. Seriously, check it out. Come back, wait! Still though, putting dead people on currency
has been a terrific way to honor Americans who have had such a big impact on the country. I hope it’s a tradition that doesn’t stop. And boy am I freaking excited for Harriet
Tubman to be on the twenty dollar bill, even if that means by the time she is on it, no
one will actually be using twenty dollar bills anymore to buy stuff. So what do YOU think? Huh? Let me know down below. Also, a special shout out to a very generous
donor named Dante Verona. Dante did not want me to give them recognition,
but like I said...it was a VERY generous donation on Paypal so thank you so much Dante. I know I got a great sponsor for this video,
but I’d rather not have to deal with sponsors, and direct donations are literal game changers
in my life. Now, if you can’t afford to donate, please
do not worry, it’s ok! I just appreciate you watching my stuff. Until next time!
Wilson is on the $100k bill