WASHINGTON, March 10, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:
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SATURDAY, MARCH 10: FIRST U.S. PAPER MONEY
Profile America - Saturday, March 10th. Paper money as we know it was first issued in the U.S. on this date 150 years ago, in 1862. Alexander Hamilton was pictured on the $5 bill, Abraham Lincoln on the $10, and the figure of liberty on the $20. These first bank notes were used to finance the Civil War. At the same time, Lincoln's counterpart, Jefferson Davis, appeared on the Confederate states' $5 bill. Now, the currency circulating in America is valued at more than $1.8 trillion. We like so-called "plastic money" as well. About three-quarters of U.S. families have credit cards, charge $300 each month, and have a median balance of $3,000. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at www.census.gov.
Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2012, p. 166
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2012, t. 1196, 1189
Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).
SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau
