National Gold Bank & Treasury Coin Notes:
Gold and Silver as a Common Standard

In the 1870s, Congress authorized nine banks in California to issue National Gold Bank notes which were redeemable in gold coin. These well-worn notes survive as tangible evidence of the rush for gold in California, when gold was the universal medium of exchange. Treasury Coin notes were issued in 1890 and 1891 with the passage of The Legal Tender Act of 1890.

This special-interest legislation--passed by Congress through the influence of the silver mining lobby--authorized the issuance of coin notes in denominations ranging from $1 to $1,000 to purchase silver bullion at inflated prices. Their issuance virtually bankrupted the U.S. Treasury. In 1893, to avert a panic, President Cleveland repealed the Silver Purchasing Act.