Anyone around here that knows the entire story of turning in silver certificates for silver coins or silver bars? How did that work. The internet does not tell the complete story I'm quite sure. Did that end in 1964? Does anyone have any good stories that relate to that? I was a youngster then. 8 years old to be exact.
Not that I am anywhere near being old enough to remember, but my understanding with the silver certificates is that coinage was silver, so you exchanged the paper bill at a bank as simply as you exchange paper for coins today. I can walk into a bank with $5 and ask for a roll of dimes. Back then, they would have been silver. In this way our currency was backed by silver, and you would receive silver. Go back another thirty years and gold would also be available. I just don't understand why we had silver certificates and non-silver certificates printed at the same time (1934 series, for instance). I would like to hear from others as well and be corrected if this is wrong.
Forum The word you're looking for is Forum. I saw my first light in 64 Don't know anything about the conversion, but I prefer Blue and Red seals over Green
I feel like I have vague memories of Mom and my brother talking about what to do with Mom's silver certificates. I would've been 4 or 5, so the memories are very vague. Mom left a few silver certificates, but no silver granules, so I guess she decided to keep them.
I remember my dad taking a bunch of silver certificates and turning them in to the bank. Silver had risen enough and 1964 was the last year of silver being made for change. Dad received $1.42 per $1.00 silver certificate. Soon afterwards that practice was stopped as silver certificates were ruled to be worth face value. Not sure if that was in 1964 or 1965. Change was difficult to get as all the silver was hoarded and clad was not ready in circulation.
Yeah. I've got about 100 of of them. Too bad they were never cashed in way back when. They are about as worthless as the new ones coming off the printing press.
Okay, here we go. The year was 1968 and they had announced that the deadline on turning in silver certificate's was up and me and an older friend went to the mint in San Francisco and he had a $5. silver certificate and I only had a $1. silver certificate and they gave him a small silver bar for his and I received a little plastic bag of melted silver that looked like melted solder.
I could be wrong but if I recall, they were all issued through different acts of Congress. National notes FRNs, silver and gold certificates, etc.
There is some information on the Silver Certificate Wiki Page: "In March 1964, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon halted redemption of silver certificates for silver dollar coins; during the following four years, silver certificates were redeemable in uncoined silver "granules". All redemption in silver ceased on June 24, 1968." And that links to a US Bureau of Engraving and Printing site with slightly more information: https://web.archive.org/web/20140403223347/http://moneyfactory.gov/silvercertificates.html I wasn't yet born when the turning in of silver certificates ended, so I have no personal experiences. But it appears that many people did do so. Whether it was actually worth doing so in the 1960s probably remains a matter of debate. I received a 1957 Silver Certificate in change from a bank maybe 15 years ago. It wasn't in great shape, but it was an interesting experience.
