United States twenty-dollar bill
| (United States) | |
|---|---|
| Value | $20 |
| Width | 156 mm |
| Height | 66.3 mm |
| Weight | Approx 1 g |
| Paper type | 75% cotton 25% linen |
| Years of printing | 1861–present |
| Obverse | |
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| Design | Andrew Jackson |
| Design date | 2003 |
| Reverse | |
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| Design | White House |
| Design date | 2003 |
The United States twenty-dollar bill ($20) is a denomination of U.S. currency. The seventh U.S. President (1829–37), Andrew Jackson has been featured on the front side of the bill since 1928, while the White House is featured on the reverse side. On April 20, 2016, it was announced that a new design, expected to be unveiled in 2020 (the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment), will have a portrait of Harriet Tubman on the front.
The twenty-dollar bill in the past was referred to as a "double-sawbuck" because it is twice the value of a ten-dollar bill, which was nicknamed a "sawbuck" due to the resemblance the Roman numeral for ten (X) bears to the legs of a sawbuck, although this usage had largely fallen out of favor by the 1980s.
As of December 2013, the average circulation life of a $20 bill is 7.9 years before it is replaced due to wear. Approximately 11% of all notes printed in 2009 were $20 bills. Twenty-dollar bills are delivered by Federal Reserve Banks in violet straps.
Andrew Jackson first appeared on the $20 bill in 1928. Although 1928 coincides with the 100th anniversary of Jackson's election as president, it is not clear why the portrait on the bill was switched from Grover Cleveland to Jackson. (Cleveland's portrait was moved to the new $1000 bill the same year). According to the U.S. Treasury, "Treasury Department records do not reveal the reason that portraits of these particular statesmen were chosen in preference to those of other persons of equal importance and prominence."
The placement of Jackson on the $20 bill may be a historical irony; as president, he vehemently opposed both the National Bank and paper money and made the goal of his administration the destruction of the National Bank. In his farewell address to the nation, he cautioned the public about paper money.
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