History of U.S. Currency

• 1860's - By the end of the Civil War, between one-third and one-half of all U.S. paper currency in circulation was counterfeit.

• 1865 - The United States Secret Service was established as a bureau of the Treasury for controlling counterfeiting throughout the nation.

• 1877 - The Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing began printing all U.S. currency.

• 1905 - The first year that the United States used paper currency which had a color background, red seal, and a serial number.

• 1913 - The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 created the Federal Reserve as the country's central bank.

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