The First Colonial Currency By The Massachusetts Bay Colony

The first Colonial currency was issued in 1690 by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, while America was under British rule. Other colonies began to issue their own paper currency, and use of the denominated in Spanish Milled Dollars, Colonial notes were also denominated in British shillings, pounds, and pence. In 1764, the British declared Colonial currency illegal. The Continental Congress in 1775 issued currency to help finance the Revolutionary War. These notes were called â€Å"Continentals,† had no value in gold or silver. The Continentals were backed by the â€Å"anticipation† of tax revenues, though easily counterfeited and without solid backing, the notes quickly became devalued. This period marked the first time that United States currency’s value was derived solely from its purchasing power, as it is today. In 1792, American Congress passed the country s first coinage act. This meant that the United States Mint was officially responsible for creating coins for public use. Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin were two of the men who contributed research and ideas towards the early versions of the coins. The Treasury Seal that was developed actually remained quite the same even until today. Benjamin Franklin takes on counterfeiting, using his Philadelphia printing firm to produce colonial notes with nature prints—unique raised patterns cast from actual leaves. This process adds an innovative and effective counterfeit deterrent to notes. The first $2 notes areShow MoreRelatedThe New Of Colonial America1119 Words   |  5 PagesAmerica Colonial America was the era when America was made up of different colonies; in this case there were thirteen. Colonial America lasted from 1587 to 1770, 183 years long. As said before, there were thirteen colonies: four New England colonies, four Middle colonies, and five Southern colonies. 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