1914 $5 Federal Reserve Currency Note AU

The LAST Horse Blanket-Sized $5 Federal Reserve Notes

The last large-sized $5 “Horse Blanket” Federal Reserve Note printed by the Bureau of Printing and Engraving, is sought-after for its detailed vignettes. It features President Abraham Lincoln on the front, with two vignettes on the back—one showing Christopher Columbus discovering America and the other featuring the Pilgrims landing in Plymouth Rock.

No Horsing Around—It’s Big!

Wallets were bigger back in the day—they had to be because the money was bigger. This 1914 $5 Federal Reserve note gets its “Horse Blanket,” nickname because at 7.5" x 3.1" it’s noticeably larger than the small-sized notes that replaced it and are still in our wallets today. The thinking was that these notes were so large that they could cover a horse’s back underneath its saddle. While that is an extreme exaggeration to prove a point, these notes are about 40% larger than our current bills. Large-size notes were first issued in 1861 when the federal government began printing demand notes. Large-size notes of all types continued to be printed and circulated until small-size notes were introduced in 1929.

Sought-After About Uncirculated Condition

In addition to its large size and beautiful vignettes, this note is highly sought-after for its scarcity. We know that as much as 99% of all the Horse Blanket Federal Reserve notes ever issued were redeemed, leaving only a miniscule number of survivors. Get yours before they’re all locked away by other collectors. This example grades in very nice About Uncirculated (AU) condition.