1863-1935 Alaska National Bank Notes
Before Alaska achieved statehood, just three territorial banks issued scarce National Bank notes, creating some of the rarest and most historically significant currency in American numismatics.
Before it became the 49th state in 1959, National Bank notes were issued in only three Alaskan charter banks: Juneau, Fairbanks, and Ketchikan.
For a territory like Alaska to issue its own currency, the bank was required to purchase United States bonds. By depositing these bonds with the Treasurer of the United States, a bank could circulate bank notes in amounts up to 90% of the value of the bonds.
National Bank notes in denominations of $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, $500, and $ 1,000 were authorized. However, Alaska National Bank notes were primarily in denominations of $5, $10, and $20.
In return, the bank would receive sheets of pre-printed Nationals. Each had the bank’s specific name, location, and charter number added. Banks then cut the sheets individually.
Before statehood, Nationals were issued by banks in other states, mainly Washington and California. Alaska first issued its own National Series of 1902, large-sized notes featuring red or blue seals. Later, the Series of 1929 of small-size notes was introduced, which connected Alaskan banks to the national currency system.
In early Alaska, issuing and printing bank notes were often separate processes. In 1898, 1905, and 1924, three issuing banks were only chartered in Juneau, Fairbanks, and Ketchikan. Today, 137 Alaska national currency bank notes are known, including all territorial notes. The number ranks it the second scarcest state/ territory after Puerto Rico.
Alaskan bank notes were said to have been issued in $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100 denominations, as these were standard for National Banks. However, search results do not identify $50 or $100 bank notes issued by Alaskan banks. The known and reported Alaska National Bank notes are primarily in denominations of $5, $10, and $20.
Bank notes also had a colored seal before statehood that matched the federal currency system. Color seals on bank notes were used to identify the type of currency (like silver or gold certificates), denote government backing, and, importantly, prevent counterfeiting. The color seals are:
- Red seals, which signified a direct U.S. government obligation, were found on United States notes (legal tender).
- Blue seals that indicate silver certificates redeemable for silver and are primarily used in $1, $5, and $10 denominations.
- Brown seals that are typically on older National Bank and Federal Reserve notes are often used by local banks, like those in Alaska.
- Small seals that refer to the smaller size of U.S. currency notes standardized from the 1928 series onward, replacing larger older notes, and could have various seal colors (often green for Federal Reserve Notes).
Prior to 1959, bank notes issued by the national banks in Juneau, Fairbanks, and Ketchikan generally featured brown or red seals, depending on the series.
First National Bank of Juneau
The First National Bank of Juneau was chartered in 1898 and opened in December of the same year at the corner of Front and Seward Streets. The bank played a significant role in the community during its early years, particularly during the Gold Rush era. The bank existed through the note-issuing period until 1935.
The First National Bank of Juneau issued 21,115 notes during the National Bank Note Era (1863–1935). Of these, 13,016 were large notes, and 8,099 were small notes, and the total dollars issued were $257,930.
A $10 First National Bank of Juneau bank note (charter #5117) is particularly famous as it’s one of the few from the Territory of Alaska (not just the district) and even had a serial number M122672E, making it highly collectible.
The “P 5117” is the bank’s charter number, which denotes Pacific designation. The photograph is of President William McKinley, and the note has a blue seal. In 2020, the bank note sold at auction for $55,200.
The reverse of the note features a vignette of the U.S. Treasury building in the center. While specific details vary by issuing bank, the standard design for 1929 National Bank notes included the Treasury vignette on the back, with the bank’s name and location on the front.
The value “TEN DOLLARS” appears as well, often in the corners and surrounding the central image. Ornate scrollwork and geometric patterns, typical of the series, are designed to prevent counterfeiting.
Rare Discovery in 2013
In 2013, the discovery of the only known “Territory of Alaska” $10 series of 1882 brown back note issued by The First National Bank of Juneau was announced. There are only two reported Territory of Alaska notes known: the $10 series of 1882 brown back shown below, and a $20 series of 1882 date back discovered in St. Louis in 1977.
The First National Bank of Fairbanks was chartered in 1905 and deposited bonds with the US Treasury in Washington. It then received National Bank notes to circulate in the area. The bank received thousands of sheets of $5, $10, and $20 bank notes.
Series 1902 red seals were the first notes issued by The First National Bank of Fairbanks, with 1,600 sheets of $5 notes and 1,460 of $10–$20 sheets making up the first notes issued by the bank. The bank issued standard denominations in red, blue, and small brown seals before closing in 1935.
A National Bank note of the $5 Series of 1902 was given to Vice President Charles W. Fairbanks, the city’s namesake, when it was issued. The historic note was printed with serial number 1.
It is based on the numbers printed on the very first note from the first sheet of Series 1902 $5 bills that were issued by the First National Bank of Fairbanks in 1905.
The note was personally hand-signed by the bank’s president and co-founder, Samuel Bennifield, a well-known professional gambler of the era who was nicknamed Square Sam. The note was also signed by the bank’s cashier, prominent Fairbank’s lawyer Luther C. Hess, who also served as a U.S. district attorney and Alaska territorial legislator. Charles W. Fairbank’s bank note was consigned to auction by family heirs in October 2012. It sold for $246,750.
The total number of notes issued by The First National Bank of Fairbanks totaled 71,308. It included 57,424 large notes and 13,884 small notes, and the total dollars dispensed were $586,350. In 1987, the First National Bank of Fairbanks closed.
First National Bank of Ketchikan
Courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
Ketchikan is a city in the Ketchikan Gateway Borough on Revillagigedo Island of Alaska, and is the state’s southeasternmost major settlement.
Ketchikan first appeared on the 1890 U.S. census as the unincorporated village of Kichikan. As of 2010, there were 8,050 people, 3,259 households, and 1,885 families residing in the city.
John Koel, a baker, arrived in Alaska in 1901. Koel started out with his “OK Bakery” restaurant and rooming house. In 1911, he built Alaska’s first reinforced concrete building on his corner lot for the investor Miners and Merchants (M&M) bank.
By the early 1920s, Ketchikan was booming, and the M&M bankers decided to build their own new 3-story building across the street. Koel was so upset that he chartered his own bank in retaliation: the First National Bank of Ketchikan, which opened in 1924, charter #12578
The First National Bank of Ketchikan only issued 1929 small-sized brown seals. The bank was one of the few in Alaska to issue these notes, which were part of the Series of 1929 National Bank notes.
The bank issued denominations of $5, $10, and $20. These notes are considered rare and valuable among collectors due to their historical significance and scarcity.
The First National Bank of Ketchikan issued 30,747 small notes, with no large notes made. The total dollars dispensed were $239,660, and the bank is still in business and is called First Bank. Today, it operates three banking locations in Ketchikan.
For the First National Bank of Juneau, Fairbanks, and Ketchikan, the National Bank note program ended in 1935. The primary legal tender in Alaska was regular United States currency, specifically Federal Reserve and United States notes and silver certificates.
However, due to the remote nature of many Alaskan communities and the scarcity of official federal coinage and currency, special local forms of money continued to circulate, most notably merchant-issued trade tokens known as “bingles.”
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