Hawaii Overprint Note Collection (WWII Emergency Issue)

Object/Artifact

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Hawaii's History, A Personal Collection

Author's Personal Collection: $1 1935A Hawaii - WWII Emergency Issue. On June 25, 1942, new overprinted notes were first issued. Series 1935A $1 silver certificate. Overprints of the word HAWAII were made; two small overprints to the sides of the obverse of the note between the border and both the treasury seal and Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco seal, and large outlined HAWAII lettering dominating the reverse. Denomination $1 Quantity printed - 35,052,000.
Author's Personal Collection

$1 1935A Hawaii - WWII Emergency Issue. On June 25, 1942, new overprinted notes were first issued. Series 1935A $1 silver certificate. Overprints of the word HAWAII were made; two small overprints to the sides of the obverse of the note between the border and both the treasury seal and Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco seal, and large outlined HAWAII lettering dominating the reverse. Denomination $1 Quantity printed - 35,052,000.

Name/Title

Hawaii Overprint Note Collection (WWII Emergency Issue)

Description

A Hawaii overprint note is one of a series of banknotes (one silver certificate and three Federal Reserve Notes) issued during World War II as an emergency issue after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The intent of the overprints was to easily distinguish United States dollars captured by the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces in the event of an invasion of Hawaii and render the notes worthless. After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, by the Empire of Japan, U.S. military officials surmised that in the event of an invasion of Hawaii, the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces would have access to a considerable amount of United States dollars which could be seized from financial institutions or private individuals. Faced with this scenario, on January 10, 1942, Military Governor Delos Carleton Emmons issued an order to recall all dollars in circulation in Hawaii, save for set caps on how much money both individuals ($200) and businesses ($500; save extra currency for payroll purposes) could possess at any time.[1][2][3][ On June 25, 1942, new overprinted notes were first issued. Series 1935A $1 silver certificate, Series 1934 $5 and $20 Federal Reserve Notes, and Series 1934A $5, $10, and $20 Federal Reserve Notes from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco were issued with brown treasury seals and serial numbers. Wikipedia Reference nos.

Web Links and URLs

Wikipedia - Hawaii Overprint Note

Created By

hawaiiancovers@gmail.com

Create Date

August 30, 2025

Update Date

August 30, 2025