Series 1929 National Bank Note Varieties: Type 1 vs. Type 2 Charter Number Placement, and Why One State Turns Everything Upside Down

A Deceptively Simple Question: Where Is That Charter Number Printed?

Pick up a Series 1929 National Bank Note and you might think you are holding a fairly common piece of Depression-era paper money. Tens of millions of these small-size notes circulated across the United States during the final chapter of the National Banking era, and raw examples in lower grades are plentiful at most currency shows and online auctions. But flip that note over, look at the face carefully, and count the charter numbers. That small detail, specifically whether the charter number appears twice or four times on the note face, is the difference between a Type 1 and a Type 2, a distinction with very real consequences for rarity and value.

The National Banking System’s Final Act

To appreciate the 1929 series properly, a little historical context matters. The National Banking Acts of the 1860s created a system of federally chartered banks, each granted a unique charter number and authorized to issue currency backed by U.S. government bonds. For nearly seven decades, these notes came in a bewildering variety of large-size designs, territorial issues, and denomination types. When the Federal Reserve System standardized paper money to the smaller 6.14 by 2.61 inch format in 1928 and 1929, the Treasury Department decided to continue allowing national banks to issue their own currency, but under a uniform small-size design.

The result was the Series 1929 National Bank Note, printed in denominations of $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100. Unlike the large-size nationals that featured elaborate state-specific vignettes, every 1929 note used the same reverse design as its Federal Reserve Note counterpart. What distinguished a note from the First National Bank of Omaha from one issued by the First National Bank of Atlanta was the bank name, city, state, charter number, and the signatures of the bank’s president and cashier overprinted on the face.

Type 1: The Baseline Design

When production began in 1929, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing printed what collectors now classify as Type 1 notes. On a Type 1, the bank’s charter number appears in brown ink in two locations: once to the left of center on the face, and once to the right of center. The serial numbers are also printed in black, and the Treasury seal is brown. The charter number essentially serves as a visual anchor on either side of the portrait, but it appears only those two times.

Type 1 notes were issued from 1929 through approximately mid-1933, though the transition date varied by bank because notes were printed in sheets and delivered to banks as requested. The serial numbers on Type 1 notes run from 000001 forward with a letter prefix corresponding to the denomination: A for $5, B for $10, C for $20, D for $50, and E for $100. Each national bank had its own serial number sequence, so serial number A000001 on a $5 from one bank has absolutely no relationship to A000001 on a $5 from a different bank.

Type 2: Four Charter Numbers Are Better Than Two

Beginning in 1933 and running through the final issuances around 1935, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing modified the plate layout to add the charter number in two additional positions: flanking the serial numbers in the center of the note face. This created the Type 2 variety, identifiable at a glance by the presence of four charter number impressions instead of two.

The motivation behind this change is not definitively documented in surviving Treasury records, but numismatic consensus holds that it was a quality-control and identification measure. With thousands of banks issuing notes, adding extra charter number impressions made it easier to identify partial or damaged notes and to detect alterations. Some researchers have suggested it was also a response to concerns about counterfeit overprinting, since adding the charter numbers in a second location tied the overprint more firmly to the specific bank’s printing plate.

Importantly, the Type 2 modification did not affect all banks equally. Banks that ceased operations before the plates were modified, or that placed their final orders early, issued only Type 1 notes. Banks that were still active and ordering currency in 1933 and afterward received Type 2 notes. A bank that operated across the entire 1929 to 1935 window might have both Type 1 and Type 2 notes in its serial number range, while a bank that failed in 1931 would have only Type 1 examples. This asymmetry is a major driver of rarity differences between the two types for individual banks.

Rarity Dynamics: Why Type 2 Is Not Always the Rare One

A common assumption among newer collectors is that Type 2 notes are automatically rarer and more valuable because they came later and from a smaller universe of still-operating banks. That assumption holds true for many individual banks, but it is not a universal rule. Context matters enormously.

Consider a bank that opened in 1929 and failed in 1930, issuing only a small print run of Type 1 notes before closure. That bank’s Type 1 notes might be genuinely rare, with only a few dozen known examples, while a neighboring bank that operated through 1935 might have Type 1 notes in the thousands and Type 2 notes in the hundreds. In the first case, the Type 1 is the key variety. In the second, the Type 2 is harder to find.

The Friedberg catalog numbers (from “Paper Money of the United States” by Arthur and Ira Friedberg) reflect this complexity. A $5 Type 1 from a common Ohio bank might be Friedberg 1800-1 and catalog at $75 in Fine, while the same denomination Type 2 from a small Wyoming bank with a three-note census might command $1,500 or more in the same grade. The type designation alone tells you very little without knowing the specific bank.

The Nebraska Complication: When a State Upends the System

Now we arrive at the part that trips up even experienced collectors: Nebraska and its unique challenge to the Type 1 versus Type 2 classification system.

In Nebraska, a number of national banks operated under charter numbers that fell in ranges where the Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s overprinting machinery produced notes with an unusual characteristic: the charter number placement on certain notes appears to straddle or duplicate in ways that do not conform neatly to either the standard Type 1 or Type 2 definition. This occurs because some Nebraska bank charter numbers, when typeset for overprinting, were positioned by certain printing contractors or BEP personnel in arrangements where the additional center pair of charter numbers overlaps visually with the serial number field in a manner rarely seen in other states.

More specifically, the complication centers on so-called “intermediate” printings documented from several Nebraska banks, particularly those with charter numbers in the 3,000 to 4,500 range, where trial plate modifications appear to have been tested before full rollout of the Type 2 standard. These notes show three charter number impressions rather than the canonical two or four, suggesting that at least one plate was modified partway through a print run. The existence of these transitional pieces was first systematically documented by James Simek in his work on Nebraska nationals, and they create a genuine classification headache for dealers and grading services alike.

Professional grading services including PCGS Currency and PMG have addressed this by occasionally using designations such as “Type 1” with a notation, or by attributing the note to its Friedberg number while flagging the anomalous charter placement in the holder comments. For collectors pursuing a complete Nebraska state collection by bank and denomination, these transitional pieces are not just curiosities; they represent a distinct sub-variety that serious specialists actively pursue.

The broader lesson from Nebraska is that the 1929 National Bank Note series, despite its superficial uniformity, contains enough printing variation and transitional material to sustain a lifetime of specialized collecting. The BEP was producing notes for roughly 6,000 different banks during a period of enormous financial stress (the Great Depression), and the record-keeping was not always meticulous.

Grading Considerations Specific to 1929 Nationals

Grading 1929 nationals involves the same standard criteria as other small-size notes (centering, folds, soiling, corner wear), but collectors should pay special attention to the overprinted elements. The brown charter numbers, bank name, and city/state designation were applied after the base notes were printed, and the overprint ink is more susceptible to fading and offsetting than the intaglio-printed portraits and reverses. A note that grades EF-40 by fold count might have a washed-out or smeared overprint that drops its eye appeal and market value considerably.

Original paper quality is also a significant factor. Many 1929 nationals circulated heavily during the Depression and emerged from old bank collections with heavy handling. Gem uncirculated (MS-65 or higher by PCGS or PMG standards) examples are scarce for most banks and command multiples of Fine or VF prices. A common $10 Type 1 that catalogs at $90 in Fine might bring $275 in Gem, and for rarer banks the premium is far larger.

Building a Collection: Strategies That Work

Collecting 1929 nationals offers several viable approaches depending on budget and focus. The most popular strategies include:

Type Set Collecting: Assembling one example of each denomination in both Type 1 and Type 2, without regard to issuing bank. This is the most accessible entry point, requiring 10 notes total, and can be completed in moderate grades for a few hundred dollars using common bank issues.

Single-State Collecting: Acquiring notes from every national bank that issued 1929 series notes within a single state. Smaller states like Nevada or Wyoming with few chartered banks are achievable goals; large states like Illinois or New York with hundreds of issuing banks represent multi-decade projects.

Single-Bank Depth Collecting: Acquiring every denomination and both types from one specific bank, sometimes extending to serial number 1 examples or high-denomination $50 and $100 notes that are far rarer than $5 and $10 issues from the same bank.

Charter Number Collecting: Some collectors focus on banks with low charter numbers (Charter 1 is the First National Bank of Philadelphia, Charter 2 is the First National Bank of New York) as a way to connect to the earliest roots of the National Banking system.

Authentication Red Flags

Because 1929 nationals derive much of their value from the overprinted bank-specific information, alterations do occur. The most common fraud involves taking a common note from a large city bank and chemically removing or overprinting the bank name, city, and charter number to simulate a rare small-town bank. Signs to watch for include: ink color mismatches between the overprint and the brown Treasury seal, paper disturbance under UV light in the overprint areas, and serial numbers that do not match documented ranges for the purported bank. Always cross-reference the serial number against census records before paying a significant premium for any note attributed to a rare issuing bank.

Conclusion: Small Details, Big Consequences

The Series 1929 National Bank Notes reward careful study in ways that few other U.S. currency series can match. The Type 1 versus Type 2 distinction, reducible to a simple charter-number count, opens up a collecting universe where the same denomination can range from a $60 circulated filler to a five-figure rarity depending entirely on which bank issued it and when. The Nebraska transitional varieties add a further layer of complexity that reminds us no standardized government printing program is ever quite as uniform as it looks from a distance. Whether you are putting together your first type set or hunting the last few notes needed to complete a single-state census, the 1929 nationals offer a depth of material that remains genuinely exciting after more than nine decades.