Counting back to a golden age

The United States Department of Treasury began printing and circulating bank notes in 1862. To this day, they are the sole issuers of currency, save for one exception in time. Under the Currency Act passed 12 July 1870, nine national gold banks in California were granted authorization to issue one specific type of currency: National Gold Bank Notes. The act was passed as gold coins were the preferred form of currency in the West following the California Gold Rush.

These notes were redeemable in gold, printed on a yellow-tinted paper, and only six denominations were ever circulated: $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, and $500. Between 1870 and 1890, 200,557 notes were issued totalling $3,465,240. Currently, there are only 630 National Gold Bank Notes in known existence. BMO is proud to have one of the 630 remaining notes in our collection today: a $5 Gold Coin Note from 1874.

The Farmers National Gold Bank of San Jose was one of the nine national gold banks with authorization to issue these unique notes. The bank received its charter in 1874 and printed five of the six denominations ($5, $10, $20, $50, and $100), for a combined total issue of $242,590. In the 1970s, the Farmers National Gold Bank of San Jose became Bank of the West. BMO acquired Bank of the West in 2023.