mar 3, 1861 - To help fund the Civil War, Congress printed “greenbacks”

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The Civil War began in 1861, which required both the Union and the Confederacy to raise huge sums of money. When Congress failed to sell enough bonds to raise the money needed for the war, they decided to print paper currency for the first time. They printed $60 million in new currency that was not backed by gold or silver. This new currency was declared legal tender by Congress and was required to be accepted as payment. Due to the green ink on the reverse side they were called “greenbacks”, which made them easy to distinguish from state notes that were black on the back.

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