During the mid 1860s, these notes were taxed out of circulation. About the same time the Federal government started to issue paper money. One type of new Federal currency was national banknotes. If a bank wanted to continue to circulate its own currency, it would have to obtain a charter from the Federal government, and also obtain their notes from the government. Some obsolete banknote issuers became national banks and still survive, and all their notes, obsolete and national, are still redeemable.
Many people collect obsolete notes from their home state or county.
Some collect unusual denominations or notes that depict coins. Others collect by subjects including trains, Indians, or unusual vignettes like whaling scenes or Santa Claus. With thousands of different designs, there are many possibilities. The scenes pictured on this old money give a unique view into the way of life and just what was important to the early Americans who used them. Currency collecting has taken off in recent years with the better notes rising in values.