Flip through a stack of Federal Reserve Notes sometime and look carefully at the face of each bill, just to the right of the plate position letter and check digit in the lower right corner. On some notes, you’ll find a small but significant detail: the letters FW, printed in the same unassuming font as the surrounding engraving. On others, nothing. That distinction, subtle enough to miss entirely on a casual glance, tells the whole story of how a brand-new Bureau of Engraving and Printing facility in Fort Worth, Texas changed the landscape of modern U.S. currency collecting forever.
Why Fort Worth? The Story Behind the Western Currency Facility
By the mid-1980s, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s sole production facility on 14th Street in Washington, D.C. was showing its age and straining under demand. Currency production had become a logistical bottleneck, and the BEP recognized that a second facility would reduce transportation costs, improve distribution efficiency to Federal Reserve Banks in the western half of the country, and provide redundancy in the event of a disruption to Washington operations.
Congress authorized the new facility in 1986, and after a site selection process that considered multiple locations, Fort Worth, Texas was chosen. Construction proceeded through the late 1980s, and the Western Currency Facility, located on Blue Mound Road in Fort Worth, began producing currency for circulation in 1991. The facility covers approximately 330,000 square feet and employs hundreds of workers engaged in every phase of the printing process, from large-size sheet printing through cutting, inspecting, and banding finished notes.
The facility’s first production run consisted of Series 1988A $1 Federal Reserve Notes, and it was with this series that the now-familiar FW designator first appeared on notes destined for collectors’ scrutiny. The small letters were added deliberately to allow the BEP and Federal Reserve to track production by facility, a practical operational decision that had the unintended consequence of creating a whole new category of modern collecting variety.
Where Exactly Is the FW, and What Does It Mean?
On Federal Reserve Notes produced at the Fort Worth facility, the letters FW appear to the right of the face plate position letter and check number in the lower right corner of the note’s face. The plate position indicator on U.S. currency identifies which position on the 32-subject printing plate produced that specific note. These indicators run from A1 through H4 (or similar combinations depending on the sheet format), and the FW suffix simply appends the Fort Worth designation to that information.
So a note produced in Washington might show something like B2 in that corner, while the same denomination and series produced in Fort Worth would show B2 FW. On some series and denominations, the FW appears as a slightly smaller superscript or in close proximity to the plate indicator, so a loupe or magnifier is genuinely useful when examining notes from the early 1990s when the printing was still being refined.
When examining notes for the FW indicator, use at least a 5x loupe and look at the lower right corner of the face. The letters are small but cleanly printed. On heavily circulated notes, the FW can be difficult to read clearly, which is why uncirculated or gem examples command the strongest premiums for key date Fort Worth varieties.
Series 1988A: The First Fort Worth Notes
The Series 1988A $1 Federal Reserve Notes represent the ground floor of Fort Worth collecting. These notes carry the signatures of Treasurer Catalina Vasquez Villalpando and Secretary of the Treasury Nicholas F. Brady. Washington-produced Series 1988A $1 notes are straightforward and common in all twelve Federal Reserve districts. The Fort Worth examples, however, carry the FW designator and were produced beginning in 1991.
For the $1 denomination alone, the distinction between Washington and Fort Worth production in this series creates twelve collecting pairs per district, one for each Federal Reserve Bank (identified by the district letter in the serial number and the Federal Reserve seal). Collectors pursuing a complete set of Series 1988A $1 notes by district and facility face a meaningful challenge, particularly for lower-mintage districts from the Fort Worth facility in this early series.
The Dallas Federal Reserve Bank (district letter K) is represented on notes from both facilities in this series, but because Fort Worth was geographically closer to Dallas, some collectors initially assumed Fort Worth notes would be more common from that district. In practice, production allocation was driven by operational capacity and Federal Reserve order fulfillment schedules rather than geography, so rarity does not always follow intuitive geographic logic.
The $1 Star Note Angle: Early Fort Worth Stars Are Scarce
Star notes, the replacement notes printed with a star suffix in the serial number to account for notes destroyed during production, add another layer of complexity to Fort Worth collecting. Star notes from the Fort Worth facility are generally scarcer than their Washington counterparts for equivalent series and districts, simply because production volume in Fort Worth was lower overall during the early years of operation.
The Series 1993 and Series 1995 $1 FW star notes in particular have attracted strong collector interest. The Series 1995 Atlanta (F*) star note from Fort Worth had a reported print run of approximately 128,000 notes, making it one of the key scarcities in modern small-size collecting. In gem uncirculated condition (PMG 65 EPQ or better), examples have realized prices well above face value at auction, with some high-grade specimens trading in the $150 to $300 range depending on grade and eye appeal.
For Fort Worth star notes, always verify the FW indicator before purchasing. Some dealers list notes as FW examples based on serial number ranges alone, but only a confirmed FW plate position indicator on the face of the note definitively establishes Fort Worth origin. Serial number ranges overlap between facilities for some series.
Higher Denominations: $5 Through $100 Fort Worth Notes
The Fort Worth facility has produced all denominations from $1 through $100, though the production mix has shifted over the decades. For collectors of higher denominations, the FW indicator creates analogous collecting opportunities, and in some cases the scarcities are even more pronounced because fewer collectors actively pursue them.
Series 1993 $100 Federal Reserve Notes with the FW indicator are particularly interesting. The $100 note underwent its first major redesign since 1969 beginning with Series 1996, so Series 1993 represents the last of the old-style large-portrait $100 notes, with signatures of Treasurer Mary Ellen Withrow and Secretary Lloyd Bentsen. Fort Worth production of Series 1993 $100 notes was limited relative to Washington output, and finding gem uncirculated examples with strong FW indicators and well-centered margins is a genuine challenge.
The redesigned Series 1996 $100 note, introducing the large off-center portrait, microprinting, color-shifting ink, and the security thread, was also produced at Fort Worth. These notes carry the FW indicator as well, and the combination of the new design features with Fort Worth origin creates a natural collecting focus for anyone building a type set of modern large-portrait notes.
Series 1999 and Later: FW Becomes a Standard Collector Checkpoint
By the time Series 1999 $1 notes were being produced, both the Washington and Fort Worth facilities were operating at high capacity, and awareness of the FW indicator had grown substantially among collectors. Population reports from grading services like PMG (Paper Money Guaranty) and PCGS Currency began to separately track Washington and Fort Worth production for key series, giving collectors a clearer picture of relative rarity.
The Series 1999 $1 note introduced the new larger numeral 1 design on the back, and collectors building complete sets by district and facility faced a 24-note challenge for this series alone (twelve districts, two facilities). The Minneapolis (I) and Kansas City (J) districts from Fort Worth in Series 1999 are considered scarcer than other districts, with lower documented populations in high grades.
If you are building a complete set of modern $1 Federal Reserve Notes by series, district, and facility, consider starting a spreadsheet to track which Washington versus Fort Worth examples you still need. The difference in collector value between a common Washington note and a scarce Fort Worth note from the same series and district can be substantial, especially for star notes.
Identifying Genuine FW Notes: Avoiding Confusion
One practical challenge for newer collectors is distinguishing the FW indicator from wear, printing artifacts, or wishful thinking. A few guidelines help. First, the FW should be clearly legible on an uncirculated note; on circulated notes, it may be worn but should still be discernible under magnification. Second, the FW appears specifically after the face plate position indicator in the lower right corner of the face, not elsewhere on the note. Third, the FW was not used on notes produced in Washington, so any note with a genuine FW in the correct location was definitively produced at the Fort Worth facility.
Some collectors and dealers have noted that on a small number of early Fort Worth notes, the FW impression can be light or slightly shifted due to plate wear or alignment issues. These are genuinely interesting printing varieties in their own right but should not be confused with standard production. Grading service holders that specifically attribute the note to Fort Worth production provide the strongest authentication for valuable examples.
| Series / Denomination | District or Variety | Approx. Print Run | Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988A $1 FW | Minneapolis (I) Star | Est. under 200,000 | Rare |
| 1993 $1 FW | San Francisco (L) Star | Est. 256,000 | Scarce |
| 1995 $1 FW | Atlanta (F) Star | 128,000 | Key Date |
| 1995 $1 FW | Boston (A) through Dallas (K) Regular | Varies by district | Common |
| 1999 $1 FW | Minneapolis (I) Regular | Est. under 400,000,000 | Scarce |
| 1993 $100 FW | All Districts (Old Design) | Limited FW allocation | Scarce |
| 1996 $100 FW | All Districts (New Design) | Various, first new-design FW | Scarce |
| 1988A $1 FW | All 12 Districts, Regular Issue | First FW production run | Scarce |
| 2003 $1 FW | All Districts, Regular Issue | High volume | Common |
Building a Fort Worth Collection: Practical Strategies
For collectors at any level, there are several productive approaches to building a meaningful Fort Worth collection. A focused set of Series 1988A $1 notes from all twelve Federal Reserve districts, Washington versus Fort Worth, represents a historically significant and achievable goal that directly documents the opening of the Fort Worth facility. A complete 24-note set in choice uncirculated condition is a genuine accomplishment that most collectors would be proud to display.
A more advanced approach involves collecting star notes exclusively from the Fort Worth facility across multiple series and denominations. This naturally concentrates attention on the scarcest notes, since star notes generally account for less than one percent of any given production run. Reference resources like the Standard Guide to Small-Size U.S. Paper Money by John Schwartz and Scott Lindquist, and the annual production data published by the BEP, provide essential print run information for planning this kind of collection.
Budget-minded collectors can start simply by setting aside any circulated notes they encounter with the FW indicator, particularly from the early series (1988A through 1995). Even in circulated condition, these notes tell the story of the Fort Worth facility’s early years and cost nothing beyond face value to accumulate from circulation.
The Bigger Picture: Two Facilities, One Currency System
The Fort Worth FW indicator is, at its core, a record-keeping mechanism that became a collector’s tool. It reflects the practical realities of producing billions of notes annually for a nation of 330 million people, and the decision to mark Fort Worth production created an unintentional but rich collecting niche that continues to reward careful, knowledgeable collectors today. The Western Currency Facility is fully operational and continues to produce notes alongside its Washington counterpart, meaning the FW collecting story is still being written with every new series issued.
Whether you are looking at a crisp Series 1988A $1 note from the very first Fort Worth production runs, hunting for the elusive 1995 Atlanta star, or simply examining your pocket change with new eyes, the small letters FW carry a weight of history that belies their modest size. They mark a genuine turning point in how the United States makes its money, and that is a story worth knowing.