Pre-1860s

1860s

1860s

1863

1878

1880s

1890

1914

1929

1934

1966

1990s

1996

2013

Then (1862) vs. Now (2013):

Via: The Wall Street Journal, Planet Oddity, and Wikipedia.
People are freaking out over the new $100 bills. Here's how they looked in ye olden days.
When we didn't have a centralized bank, private banks would issue their own notes. So your paper "money" might look different depending on what institution you got it at.
At this point — during the Civil War — these United States Notes or Legal Tender gained a nickname you've probably heard: Greenbacks.
The Confederacy actually had currency of their own. And it certainly reflected the values and circumstances of the South — this note depicts a slave loading cotton into a wagon.
A very rare Gold Certificate. This would have represented actual gold coins. It's up for auction with a starting bid of $900,000. So if you have money...to buy money...go for it.
The introduction of Silver Certificates featured a portrait of James Monroe.
A $100 United States Note featuring Abraham Lincoln.
Here's what was called a Coin Note, to be used for purchase of "silver bullion" aka silver coins. And featured some general no one remembers.
Here's where the $100 bill gets its famous nickname — when Benjamin Franklin was finally put on the front.
This year saw a big change — the bills shrank in physical size to become the dimensions we are now used to today.
Minor physical changes. But the note no longer allowed the bearer to redeem it for gold.
The back now features "In God We Trust."
Remember these guys? These bills included security features like a metallic security strip.
A major overhaul of the $100 bill brings a re-vamped design with even more security features — a hologram-like watermark, extremely small red and blue fibers, and black light capabilities. Damn, money is complicated.
Voilà! Here's your new Benjamin which apparently will come with a 3-D security ribbon and a ton of other space age shit.
Via: The Wall Street Journal, Planet Oddity, and Wikipedia.