America's Ever-Changing MoneyMoney and Tokens of the Civil War (1861-1865)

Fractional Currency

To provide an alternative to using postage stamps during the coin shortage, the U.S. began to print fractional notes in small denominations. The first issue followed the postage stamp theme by using engravings of postage stamps to make currency in five-cent, 10-cent, 25-cent, and 50-cent denominations. Later issues used more traditional currency designs.