What If We Had A $10,000 Bill?

I have been amazed over the past two years how interested people are in foreign currency.  It all started with a secret agent for our government returning from the South Sudan and he gave me a $500 bill from that country.  Although it was only worth $3 here, I was so impressed with the bill I hung it up in my car.  My passengers took pictures of it and then started giving me bills from their country or ones they had just visited. Today, I have 37 countries represented in my museum, just hanging in my car.

Many of the foreign bills are more colorful and more striking that our bills.  However, what if we had a  $10,000 bill? We don't now, but we used to.  Pictured below is a bill from the depression that was just sold at an auction for almost half a million dollars. This bill has a picture of Abraham Lincoln's Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase in 1860.

If you compare a $5 bill of Abraham Lincoln today, a few things stand out.  The old one is in mint condition and the light green does give it some color. Seeing the numbers, "10,000", looks pretty awesome.  Although most people don't know Salmon P. Chase, he was very important.  He established the National Bank system and later served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

In 1969, it was announced that we would no longer print $500, $1000, $5,000 and $10,000 bills because they weren't being used.  They wouldn't be used today either since we have computers and credit cards, but wouldn't it be fun to have a $10,000 bill in your wallet just to have one?