The 1957 Silver Certificate
You're looking through your dollar bills and you find one that feels and looks different. It's a one dollar bill, but it says "Silver Certificate" at the top and a date of 1957. You realize you are holding in your hand something different, and it very well might be worth something.
The silver certificates were started in 1878 to start another branch of our money. In 1928, the money was cut down to a smaller size, and because of this size difference, the mint decided to begin minting certificates that were linked directly to pieces of silver rather than the gold standard that was set up before. Before the 1960's you could go to the mint and get an equal amount of silver bullion. The practice and regulations stated that any silver certificate that was redeemed for real silver had to be destroyed. Therefore, the amount of silver certificates began to decrease significantly.
The silver certificates were started in 1878 to start another branch of our money. In 1928, the money was cut down to a smaller size, and because of this size difference, the mint decided to begin minting certificates that were linked directly to pieces of silver rather than the gold standard that was set up before. Before the 1960's you could go to the mint and get an equal amount of silver bullion. The practice and regulations stated that any silver certificate that was redeemed for real silver had to be destroyed. Therefore, the amount of silver certificates began to decrease significantly.
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Because of this significant decrease, the silver certificates, especially the 1957 silver certificate, has become largely collectible. The 1957 silver certificate was the largest lot they made, but it was also the largest lot that was redeemed for silver. The prices of these silver certificates change on an almost daily basis since they are connected to the silver trade as well as the amount of certificates that are out there. The letter that follows the date and the imperfections that were printed on it will increase the worth. The best place to find out the actually value of your 1957 silver certificate is a Paper Money Price Guide.