The World History of Money

Americas

Ancient Times – Below is a picture of xuigi and coca beans. They were used to trade in pre-Columbian Mexico.

1500’s – This is when the earliest use of wampum was suspected.

1600’s-1700’s – The Spanish dollar coin served as the unofficial national currency of the American colonies.

1639 – Wampum was considered a type of money for the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

1700s – This is how much Wampum was worth: 360 white beads equaled 5 schillings &
6 white beads equaled 1 penny.


1776 – This banknote was issued in New Jersey. It is in British pounds, not dollars.


1776 – The Continentals go down in value. Continentals were a typical note issued by the Continental Congress. They were issued in order to pay off the costs of the Revolution, but soon grew worthless, due to lack of confidence in the government. This is where the term, "not worth a continental" came from.

1793 - The first U.S. coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint and presented to Martha Washington.

1860-1921 – The number of banks in the U. S. increased by 19 times.


1862 – The Bureau of Engraving and Printing was established.

1865 – Approximately 1/3 of all circulating American currency was counterfeit.

1873 – The silver dollar stopped being of standard value.

1930 – The Great Depression effected people worldwide. It also started the end of the gold standard.

1934 –100,000 dollar bill was one of the largest banknotes issued by the United States Mint. Pictured on it was Woodrow Wilson, the 28th president of the United States.

1938 – Today’s nickel was "invented."

1950 – The credit card was finally accepted.These credit cards are from the 1950's.

1990 – A new series of bank notes was introduced to improve security and stay away from counterfeiters and advances in technology which makes it easier to reproduce currency. These notes have micro printing.


Present – We currently use pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, one dollar bills, five dollar bills, ten dollar bills, twenty dollar bills, fifty dollar bills and one hundred dollar bills. These are the most basic currencies, but many others also exist in active use. We also use credit cards.

Future – I believe that there will be a totally new monetary system. Other than a finger-print-activated vault, there will be anywhere from a 56 or 72 cent pieces. There will also be dollar bills just like them. I believe that by 2025, we will use money made of crystals and valuable stone. They will be encased in clear, thick plastic. They will be because if someone dropped it, it would break without the case. There is also a possible chance that there will be the same money as there is used today. Overall, I think that they will not use the exact same money as the use right now, because governments always feel like they have to improve.