I have covered the subject of collecting by “Signature Combination” in several previous articles. This is a fascinating way to collect US Paper Money and in this article I would like to cover, in depth, another interesting series.
The “Jackass” Notes…. These are the 10 Dollar Legal Tender Notes dated from 1869 to 1880. These have the designated Friedberg Numbers from FR. 96 through FR. 113.
This article will cover the various designs, number of notes printed, and total notes known in both circulated and uncirculated condition. There is also comprehensive chart which shows the scarcity of the various Friedberg Numbers.
The design of this series has the portrait of Daniel Webster who was a US Congressman and Senator and also served as Secretary of State in the mid 1800’s. The engraver was Alfred Sealey, the vignette on the bottom right face has the Indian Princess Pocahontas being presented to England’s Royal Court.
These notes are known by the nickname “Jackass” because the Eagle at the center bottom of the face of the note, if turned upside down, and you let your imagination take over, it does look like the head of a Jackass. I would really like to know who was the person that took the time to do that, I bet he would have never known he would make the “Jackass” nickname, history.
There are a total of 18 signature combinations starting with the 1869 FR. 96 Rainbow Ten which is known for its array of fascinating colors, and the famous Spinner Signature. This series also has 6 different color seals. These are, the Large Red; Small Red with Rays; Large Brown; Large Red Plain; Large Red with Spikes; and the Small Red Scalloped. There are also 2 colors of Serial Numbers, red and blue, and 2 different reverses.
| FR. No. | NOTES PRINTED | TOTAL KNOWN | CIRCULATED | UNCIRCULATED |
| 96 | 8,376,000 | 324 | 120 | 204 |
| 97 | 1,500,000 | 11 | 11 | 0 |
| 98 | 866,000 | 28 | 21 | 7 |
| 99 | 2,600,000 | 69 | 34 | 35 |
| 100 | 1,560,000 | 39 | 15 | 24 |
| 101 | 1,872,000 | 26 | 20 | 6 |
| 102 | 2,732,000 | 79 | 41 | 38 |
| 103 | 1,000,000 | 78 | 16 | 62 |
| 104 | 1,084,000 | 28 | 27 | 1 |
| 105 | 1,616,000 | 37 | 32 | 5 |
| 106 | 2,552,000 | 80 | 37 | 43 |
| 107 | 2,748,000 | 74 | 42 | 32 |
| 108 | 1,508,000 | 75 | 40 | 35 |
| 109 | 200,000 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 110 | 3,792,000 | 73 | 23 | 50 |
| 111 | 9,900,000 | 125 | 58 | 67 |
| 112 | 960,000 | 29 | 28 | 1 |
| 113 | 11,840,000 | 185 | 128 | 57 |
| Total Printed for series | 56,706,000 | 1,362 | 695 | 667 |
After examining the chart you can see what remains of over 56 million notes printed, is a mere 1362 notes. This is as of the March 2003 Martin Gengerke U.S. Paper Money Census.
This again underlines how scarce Paper Money is. Please notice that there are 2 Friedberg Numbers, FR. 97 and FR.109, with not any surviving examples reported in uncirculated condition to date. For Friedberg Numbers FR.104 and Fr.112, only one example is known of each, in uncirculated condition.
The challenge is that only 2, yes only 2 complete Friedberg Number sets of the “Jackass” series are possible since there are only 2 Friedberg 109’s known. For the two lucky collectors that are able to complete a set, that feat would be quite a historic accomplishment. Even collecting the series without FR. 109 that would be 17 different notes by signature combination, would be quite a deed.
Collecting Paper Money is a lot of fun and very exciting no matter which way you collect it, but the most important thing is for it to be fun and instructive. There is so much to learn about Paper Money that I know you could keep yourself busy for a long time. Of course the more interesting and intriguing it is, the easier it is to recruit friends, family members, and others to join this fascinating hobby. I particularly like the challenge of putting complete sets together, by Signature Combinations, though I know it is not for everyone.
This article has addressed the total number of signature combinations known for the series, the number of notes in circulated and uncirculated condition and the many possible sets that can be assembled for this series. I hope this information will be helpful and instructive.
Have lots of fun and happy hunting!
