Yes, they did, and I can’t for the life of me figure out why there was such a mass belief that this would result in a valuable collectible.
I do treasure mine, though, and remember standing in line to get them stamped.
There are certain types of notes such as star (replacement) notes which carry a significant premium (but I’m not sure about the 1976 $2s). Anything attached or stamped on them would certainly reduce their value. It’s like adding a bumper sticker to your Rolls.
What if you gave me $2 in 1976 and I put it in the stock market? Do you think I’d have more than $3.50 in 2012?
Even at only 1% annual return (compounded) you’d have $4.
Exactly. I’m pretty sure that you have lost money relative to inflation.
Because at the time, a stamp cancelled on its first day of issue was considered a collectible. They still are but the rules are now so relaxed that they really aren’t so “treasured” anymore.
Yeah, according to this inflation calculator, for you to have the same purchasing power as in 1976, that $2 would have to be worth $8 today.
It was up to the individual branch managers if they wanted to open that day or not. The Baltimore main post office was open. I don’t have a specific cite, but I’ve read it on several numismatic web sites.
Star notes really don’t carry that much of a premium, if any, over regular notes.
I well remember the 1976 series of $2 bills. I always liked the back design, and I was sorry they never caught on.
As it is, I find reverse-side images of all our circulating currency to be dull beyond belief. Before the first design overhaul in the early 1990s, the $20 and $20 had some interesting details, like the bushes on the $20 and the corner view of the Treasury building on the $10. Now that’s all gone, and for that matter, $10-bills themselves, pretty much.
I did not know that.
Still, the bills were issued on April 13, 1976, not July 4. Only that date stamped on the $2 bill would have had any significance.
And if, say, you were born on April 13, 1976. Or even better if it was your kid’s second birthday.