Series 1934A $20 Federal Reserve Note – Chicago District

• Catalog Reference: Friedberg #2055-G (Fr. 2055-G)

• Denomination: $20 (Twenty Dollars)

• Type: Small-Size Federal Reserve Note (Green Treasury Seal & Green Serials)

• Series: Series of 1934 A (Holder label is 100% accurate on Series, District, and Friedberg attribution)

• District: G7 – Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Illinois (Represented by the circular bank seal G on the left and district numeral 7 in the inner corners)

• Facility: Washington, D.C.

• Signatures: Julian – Morgenthau Jr. (W. A. Julian, Treasurer of the United States; Henry Morgenthau Jr., Secretary of the Treasury)

• Serial Number: G 76961235 A

• Plate Positions: Front position letter C 1 (upper left), Front plate C 61 (lower right), Back plate 434 (lower right, above the right corner denomination frame)

Design & Series Characteristics

• Pre-War Obligation & Gold Clause Modification:

  • Displays the classic lower-border demand clause: "WILL PAY TO THE BEARER ON DEMAND TWENTY DOLLARS".

  • Features the revised post-1933 legal tender clause at the left: "THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER FOR ALL DEBTS, PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, AND IS REDEEMABLE IN LAWFUL MONEY AT THE UNITED STATES TREASURY, OR AT ANY FEDERAL RESERVE BANK."

• Reverse Vignette (The White House): The vintage pre-expansion south portico view of the White House, free of the modern motto "IN GOD WE TRUST".

• Serial Breakdown (G 7696 1235 A):

  • Digits present: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 (a 7-digit mix).

  • Features an ascending broken run in the tail (1-2-3...5) paired with an opening pair of alternating sixes (7696), following normal circulation distribution.

Full View Condition Assessment

• Technical Grade: Very Fine (VF 20 – VF 25)

• Paper Quality & Wear Breakdown:

  • Structure & Fiber: Paper retains honest internal body, standing flat inside the holder without feeling limp or washed out.

  • Folds & Handling: Shows classic commercial circulation wear with three distinct vertical folds—one through the left bank seal/serial, one through Andrew Jackson’s portrait, and one through the right Treasury seal—along with gentle horizontal creasing.

  • Margins & Edges: Margins are fully intact and complete with no corner loss, major gouges, or edge splits penetrating into the design frame.

  • Surfaces: Natural, even handling tone across the white selvage borders consistent with genuine pre-WWII circulation; free of graffiti, rubber stamps, or ink pen marks.

  • Overprint inks retain good green depth on the Treasury seal and serial numbers.

Current Market Valuation

• Problem-free, raw Series 1934A $20 notes with full margins and honest VF eye appeal trade comfortably above face value