9 facts I learned at the Money Museum at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Today I visited a free museum and learned a few things about money from the exhibits, but mostly from talking to a guy working there:

  1. Old coins are melted and used again to create new coins
  2. Worn out bills are shredded in all 12 federal reserve districts and 33 other facilities
  3. The Chicago Federal Reserve Bank shreds $23 million a day. In April and November (for summer traveling and holiday shopping), it shreds up to $28 million each day. In January, it typically shreds $11 million each day.
  4. Federal reserve bills are made with linen and can be folded 3,000-4,000 times before ripping.
  5. In 2013, it cost 1.9 cents to make a penny
  6. It costs 10+ cents to make a nickel
  7. We will unlikely be able to redesign these coins because companies that produce coin readers (used in buses, toll counters, etc.) will have to redesign these machines
  8. Someone once stole $180,000 worth of nickels from the Reserve. The institution got the money back – 80,000 nickels from Coin Star and the remainder of the money buried in someone’s backyard.
  9. What $1 million looks like
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