Seal of the United States Department of the Treasury
Encyclopedia
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
. It actually predates the department, having originated with the Board of Treasury during the period of the Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation, formally the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, was an agreement among the 13 founding states that legally established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and served as its first constitution...
. It is used on all U.S. paper currency, and (like other departmental seals) on official Treasury documents.
The seal includes a chevron with thirteen stars, representing the original thirteen states. Above the chevron is a balance, representing justice. The key below the chevron represents authority and trust.
The phrase THE DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY is around the rim, and 1789 (the year the department was established) is at the bottom. This inscription is in a Cheltanham Bold font.
History
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that started meeting on May 10, 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, soon after warfare in the American Revolutionary War had begun. It succeeded the First Continental Congress, which met briefly during 1774,...
named John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
, Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris , was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a native of New York City who represented Pennsylvania in the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation. Morris was also an author of large sections of the...
and Richard Henry Lee
Richard Henry Lee
Richard Henry Lee was an American statesman from Virginia best known for the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from Great Britain. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and his famous resolution of June 1776 led to the United States...
to design seals for the Treasury and the Navy. The committee reported on a design for the Navy the following year, but there is no record of a report about a seal for the Treasury.
The actual creator of the seal was probably Francis Hopkinson
Francis Hopkinson
Francis Hopkinson , an American author, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence as a delegate from New Jersey. He later served as a federal judge in Pennsylvania...
, who was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
and also contributed to the design of the Great Seal of the United States
Great Seal of the United States
The Great Seal of the United States is used to authenticate certain documents issued by the United States federal government. The phrase is used both for the physical seal itself , and more generally for the design impressed upon it...
. He is known to have later submitted bills to the Congress in 1780 seeking payment for his design of flags, currency, and several seals, including one for the Board of Treasury. Although it is not certain that Hopkinson was the designer, the Seal is similar to others he designed. The earliest known usage of the seal was in 1782. When the United States Government was established in 1789, the new Department of the Treasury continued to use the existing seal.
In addition to the elements still found on the current seal, the original featured more ornamentation and the Latin inscription THESAUR. AMER. SEPTENT. SIGIL. around the rim. The inscription is an abbreviation for the phrase Thesauri Americae Septentrionalis Sigillum, which translates to "The Seal of the Treasury of North America". The reason for the original wording that embraced all of North America is unknown, although interestingly the first national bank—chartered in 1781 to help solidify the nation's finances—was named the Bank of North America
Bank of North America
The Bank of North America was a private business chartered on December 31, 1781 by the Congress of the Confederation and opened on January 7, 1782, at the prodding of Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris. This was thus the nation's first de facto central bank. It was succeeded in its role as...
.
After nearly 200 years, Treasury Secretary
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
Henry H. Fowler
Henry H. Fowler
Henry Hammill Fowler was an American lawyer and politician.Born in Roanoke, Virginia, he graduated from Roanoke College in 1929 and received his law degree from Yale Law School in 1932....
approved a new, simplified version of the seal on January 29, 1968. The Latin inscription was replaced by the English THE DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY, and 1789 was added at the bottom.
Currency
United States Note
A United States Note, also known as a Legal Tender Note, is a type of paper money that was issued from 1862 to 1971 in the U.S. Having been current for over 100 years, they were issued for longer than any other form of U.S. paper money. They were known popularly as "greenbacks" in their heyday, a...
s) in 1862 and continuing today. The only exceptions were the Demand Note
Demand Note
A Demand Note is a type of United States paper money that was issued between August 1861 and April 1862 during the American Civil War in denominations of 5, 10, and 20 US$...
s of 1861 (the original "greenbacks") and the first three issues of fractional (less than a dollar) notes in the 1860s; in both cases the authorizing laws did not require the seal.
Initially the U.S. Government had no means to produce bills on its own, so the first paper bills were printed by private firms and then sent to the Treasury Department for final processing. Along with trimming and separating the bills, this processing included the overprinting of the seal onto the notes (even today, the serial number and seal are overprinted on the notes after the face has been printed). This was the beginning of what was later known as the Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is paper currency for the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve itself is...
. In July 1869, the Bureau began to print notes on its own.
or spikes. Among the colors used for the seal during this period were red, blue, and brown.
The usage of the seal was standardized starting on the smaller-sized notes of Series 1928
Series of 1928 (United States Currency)
The Series of 1928 was the first issue of small-size currency printed and released by the U.S. government. These notes were the first standardized notes in terms of design and characteristics, featuring similar portraits and other facets...
. The seal was printed with a toothed outer edge, and other than the color were the same across all styles of currency. Federal Reserve Note
Federal Reserve Note
A Federal Reserve Note is a type of banknote used in the United States of America. Federal Reserve Notes are printed by the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing on paper made by Crane & Co. of Dalton, Massachusetts. They are the only type of U.S...
s were issued with a green seal, Silver Certificate
Silver Certificate
Silver Certificates are a type of representative money printed from 1878 to 1964 in the United States as part of its circulation of paper currency. They were produced in response to silver agitation by citizens who were angered by the Fourth Coinage Act, which had effectively placed the United...
s with a blue seal, Gold Certificates
Gold certificate
A gold certificate in general is a certificate of ownership that gold owners hold instead of storing the actual gold. It has both a historic meaning as a US paper currency and a current meaning as a way to invest in gold....
with an orange seal, United States Note
United States Note
A United States Note, also known as a Legal Tender Note, is a type of paper money that was issued from 1862 to 1971 in the U.S. Having been current for over 100 years, they were issued for longer than any other form of U.S. paper money. They were known popularly as "greenbacks" in their heyday, a...
s with a red seal, and National Bank Note
National Bank Note
National Bank Notes were United States currency banknotes issued by National banks chartered by the United States Government. The notes were usually backed by United States bonds the bank deposited with the United States Treasury.- Background :...
s and Federal Reserve Bank Note
Federal Reserve Bank Note
Federal Reserve Bank Notes are legal tender in the United States, together with United States Notes, Silver Certificates, Gold Certificates, National Bank Notes and Federal Reserve Notes. They had the same value as other kinds of notes of similar face value...
s with brown seals.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, special versions of Federal Reserve Notes and Silver Certificates
Hawaii overprint note
A Hawaii overprint note is one of a series of banknotes issued during World War II as an emergency issue after the attack on Pearl Harbor...
were printed with the word HAWAII on each end, and circulated only in Hawaii between 1942 and 1944. The seal and serial numbers were brown to further distinguish them from regular notes. In the event that Hawaii was captured by enemy forces, the special notes could be declared worthless. Similarly, special Silver Certificates were issued for use by American troops during the invasion of North Africa in November 1942. These notes had a distinctive yellow treasury seal, which would again allow them to be declared worthless if large amounts fell into enemy hands.
In Series 1950, the general design of all Federal Reserve Notes was changed slightly, and a smaller seal was used. The 1968 version of the Treasury Seal had first been used on the $100 United States Note in Series 1966, and was later introduced on all Federal Reserve Notes starting with Series 1969.
Watchdog seal
United States Government Printing Office
The United States Government Printing Office is an agency of the legislative branch of the United States federal government. The office prints documents produced by and for the federal government, including the Supreme Court, the Congress, the Executive Office of the President, executive...
.
The seal contains a symbolic strongbox, with the Scales of Justice on top. Lying beside the strongbox is a capable looking watchdog, with his left front paw securely clasping a large key. The seal bears the lettering "U.S. Treasury", and is bordered by a wreath. The scales and the key are also incorporated on the official seal.
The United States Mint
United States Mint
The United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792, and placed within the Department of State...
did in fact own a real watchdog named Nero, who was originally purchased in 1793 for $3 and accompanied the night watchman on his rounds. Treasury documents record further expenditures for Nero and successor watchdogs over the following twenty-five years. According to department legend, Nero is the canine depicted on the seal, and may have been the origin (or at least the inspiration) of the term "Watchdog of the Treasury".
External links
- Fact Sheet on the Seal of the Treasury Department
- Bureau of Engraving and Printing Currency Notes (PDF), which has a chapter on the Treasury Seal
- Treasury Order 100-01, The Department of the Treasury Seal
- Treasury Directive 73-04 (policy for the use of the seal)