Ten Dollars, Series of 1934
One Design, Four Federal Reserve Banks: Cleveland, Richmond, Chicago, and San Francisco
The Federal Reserve System is made up of twelve regional banks, each authorized to issue its own paper currency under a common design. These four $10 copies —identical in portrait, vignette and text— illustrate just that: only the black district seal, identifying letter and serial number prefix change from one issuing bank to the next.
Common Design
Obverse:oval portrait ofAlexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, with the black seal of the issuing regional bank on the left and the green seal of the Treasury on the right.
Reverse:engraved vignette of the United States Treasury Building in Washington, D.C., identical across all four issues.
The Only Thing That Changes: the Issuing Bank
Each of the twelve Federal Reserve Banks — identified by a letter A through L— prints the same bill design, distinguishable only by the district seal and the corresponding letter in the four corners of the obverse:Dfor Cleveland,Efor Richmond,Gfor Chicago andLfor San Francisco, in this set.
This set illustrates three serial letters of the same design: Chicago in Series 1934 (FR-2004G), Cleveland and San Francisco in Series 1934-A, and Richmond in Series 1934-D with the Georgia Neese Clark/John W. Snyder signature pair. These variants reflect the passage of different officeholders at the Treasury between the original 1934 printing and subsequent reprints, which spanned more than a decade.
The photograph of the Chicago specimen is a Series 1934 type image (FR-2004G); the catalog data correspond to collection specimen G30986728A.
Print Run of Series 1934 (original)
For the original Series 1934 —excluding 1934A, 1934B, 1934C and 1934D— the printing totals reported by Federal Reserve district are:
| District | Federal Reserve Bank | Printed banknotes |
|---|---|---|
| A | Boston | 46.276.152 |
| B | New York | 117.298.008 |
| C | Philadelphia | 34.770.768 |
| D | Cleveland | 28.764.108 |
| E | Richmond | 16.437.252 |
| F | Atlanta | 20.656.872 |
| G | Chicago | 69.962.064 |
| H | St. Louis | 22.593.204 |
| I | Minneapolis | 16.840.980 |
| J | Kansas City | 22.627.824 |
| K | Dallas | 21.403.488 |
| L | San Francisco | 37.402.308 |
| Total | 455.033.028 |
The combined face value was$4.550.330.280. These district totals are reported as the set of all varieties in the 1934 Series: Bureau of Engraving and Printing records do not separately distinguish the quantities of light green, dark green, and dark stamp.mulesdark green stamp.
The banknotes were physically produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing; the letter A through L identifies the Federal Reserve Bank or district for which each note was issued.
Largest print run: New York, with 117,298,008 banknotes. Smallest reported print run: Richmond, with 16,437,252 notes.
Note on source: The exact figures come from a detailed compilation of the Collectors Society (PMG/NGC) register and match the widest documented range; No surviving official BEP table was located that reproduces each number district by district.
Legacy for Collectors
Collecting the same note from different Federal Reserve districts is one of the most accessible forms of thematic collecting: it tangibly illustrates the decentralized structure of the U.S. central banking system without requiring the pursuit of rarities or high-value varieties.
Sources
- Collectors Society (PMG/NGC) registry — set “1934 $10s*” (KSAUSA owner): district printing totals for Fr. 2004, cited as “Notes printed in all varieties”.View set gallery (new window)(opens in a new tab)
- Friedberg, Arthur L. & Ira S.Paper Money of the United States.
- Bureau of Engraving and Printing —bep.gov (new window)(opens in a new tab)
- USPaperMoney.info — serial ranges for the $10 FRN, 1934–1934D:uspapermoney.info (new window)(opens in a new tab)
- Heritage Auctions —ha.com (new window)(opens in a new tab)
- Numista —numista.com (new window)(opens in a new tab)