Old Money from The First National Bank of Paducah | 1599

The First National Bank of Paducah

The First National Bank of Paducah in Kentucky printed $1,738,850 dollars worth of national currency. Over $1,000,000 face value is a lot of money. However, some types and denominations of currency from this bank could still be rare. This national bank opened in 1865 and stopped printing money in 1931, which equals a 67 year printing period. That is considering a long operation period for a national bank. During its life, The First National Bank of Paducah issued 13 different types and denominations of national currency. We have examples of the types listed below. Your bank note should look similar. Just the bank name will be different. For the record, The First National Bank of Paducah was located in McCracken County. It was assigned charter number 1599.

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The First National Bank of Paducah in Kentucky printed 3,300 sheets of $5 original series national bank notes. It is actually pretty standard for an early national bank to have a sheet output range between 2,500 and 5,000. The exact value of a bill is still going to be based on the number of notes known and the condition of each bank note. Each five dollar original series bank note has a spiked red seal. That is pretty much the only design difference between it and later issues. These are really beautiful notes. One neat thing about these is that the back of each note has a vignette of the corresponding state seal. Some of the state seals are very imaginative. Collecting by state seal was very popular early on in the hobby. Today most collectors are more concerned about bank of issue and condition. Serial number one bank notes are also extremely popular.
Original Series $5 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah printed 6,720 sheets of $10 original series national bank notes. Just because a print range is between 5,000 and 10,000 doesn’t mean that individual notes will be easy to buy. That number isn’t really high or low. Some notes are extremely rare and some could be from a hoard. Values are determined based on condition and the number of known survivors. These notes were issued during the glory days of the national bank note era. Each $10 bill was pen signed by the president and cashier of the bank. Small towns and large cities both issued these notes. Of course the small town issuers tend to be scarcer today. Prices range from $500 to thousands of dollars (and more if the condition and rarity warrant it). Contact us if you need help valuing your bank note.
Original Series $10 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 6,720 sheets of $20 original series national bank notes. That issue number may or may not sound like a lot of sheets depending on your experience with collectible currency. However, all original series $20 bills are rare. The production amount is irrelevant when it comes to values. These seem like common issues until you want to buy one. These just aren’t readily available from rare banks in very fine or better condition. We definitely feel like these are undervalued in today’s market.
Original Series $20 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 2,730 sheets of $10 series of 1875 national bank notes. Hundreds of banks had sheet outputs between 2,500 and 5,000. That is pretty typical for a medium sized national bank in the 1870s. The two vignettes seen on 1875 $10 bank notes are “Franklin and Electricity” and “America Seizing Lightning”. These notes occasionally confuse novices because the year 1752 is printed on them. That is when Benjamin Franklin discovered electricity. It has nothing to do with when these bank notes were issued. The back of each $10 bill has “DeSoto Discovering the Mississippi.”
Series of 1875 $10 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 2,730 sheets of $20 series of 1875 national bank notes. The exact number of series of 1875 $20 national bank notes printed by this bank is good to know. Don’t expect a high number to lower the value or a small number to increase the value. These notes are scarce enough on their own that the stats don’t really matter. Twenty dollars was a lot of money between 1875 and 1901, which is the time period in which these were printed. These just weren’t saved in high numbers.
Series of 1875 $20 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 4,444 sheets of $10 1882 brown back national bank notes. That it is not an exceptionally low number of sheets. However, you have to remember that we are talking about bank notes printed before 1902. Even a large print number could have a very low survival rate. There were three $10 bills printed on a single sheet of 1882 brown backs. The design of the bill is similar to all earlier ten dollar national bank notes. The nickname comes from the fact that these bills have a brown seal and brown overprint. Despite saying series of 1882, these were actually printed by some banks up until 1908. The date you see in cursive relates to when the bank first started issuing brown back notes.
Series of 1882 $10 Brown Back

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 4,444 sheets of $20 1882 brown back national bank notes. As you can see, the sheet output is the same for $20 brown backs as it is for $10 brown backs. There was only one $20 brown back printed on a sheet. So the sheet output also equals the total note output. One neat thing about all brown backs is that they each have a different back design based on which state issued them. The back left hand side of the note shows the state seal of which ever state the national bank was located in. Generally speaking, 1882 $20 brown backs are pretty difficult to locate. They typically were printed in small numbers and they don’t have a great survival rate.
Series of 1882 $20 Brown Back

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 460 sheets of $50 1902 red seal national bank notes. That is also the exact number of $50 red seals printed by this bank. Each sheet contained one $50 bill and one $100 bill. They are all extremely rare. The value for a generic circulated example is usually around $4,000. Most are worth more and some can be worth considerably more. John Sherman is pictured on each note. Otherwise it has the same markings you would expect to find on any 1902 red seal.
1902 $50 Red Seal National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 460 sheets of $100 1902 red seal national bank notes. As we said above, all high denomination 1902 red seals are extremely rare. The number of notes printed really doesn’t matter to collectors. 1902 $100 red seals are rare to the point that they are always in demand. Of course the standard valuation rules still apply. Condition and bank of issue are of paramount importance. We have paid over $12,000 for some of the rarest specimens.
1902 $100 Red Seal National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 2,247 sheets of $50 1902 blue seal national bank notes. There is no trick to knowing which 1902 blue seals will be common and rare. Often times the number printed won’t tell you much information. The value still comes down to condition and demand. That is a surprise to most people. In fact, most 1902 $50 bills we see are worth between $750 and $1,250. The rarer ones can be worth more than $5,000. However, there isn’t much middle ground.
1902 $50 Blue Seal National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 2,247 sheets of $100 1902 blue seal national bank notes. It is no coincidence that the sheet numbers for $50 bills and $100 bills are the same. They were printed on the same sheets. Most $100 blue seals are at least scarce; others can be very rare. John J Knox is printed on the front of each bill. Most collectors like the back design a lot more though. It is really unique and different from most other national bank notes. Prices for 1902 $100 blue seals are pretty similar to $50 blue seals. They are both equally common or equally rare, depending on how you look at it.
1902 $100 Blue Seal National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 1,561 sheets of Type1 1929 $10 national bank notes. That is a pretty typical sheet output for a national bank during the small size era. Each $10 bill from 1929 has a portrait of Alexander Hamilton on it. The black number written vertically is the charter number. The charter number never affects the value; it is just an identifier. The ten dollar type1 national bank note happens to be the single most common national bank note, with over 65,000 known to exist from all banks. Of course each note is valued based on its condition and rarity. Some are very rare.
Series of 1929 Type1 $10 National Bank Note

The First National Bank of Paducah also printed 447 sheets of Type1 1929 $20 national bank notes. That may sound like a very small number, and it is. However, when it comes to small size notes, that print range usually allows for a handful of survivors. Andrew Jackson is featured on the front of each 1929 $20 bill. Be sure to take note of the serial number on your specific bank note. If it is 000001 then you can expect a nice premium. There is a special market for serial number one bank notes. Of course, even if the number isn’t #1, it could still be collectible and have a high value just based on its condition and rarity alone.
Series of 1929 Type1 $20 National Bank Note

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