With the 75th anniversary of the World War II Pearl Harbor attack this year on Dec. 7, one of the unique things that resulted from the attack is the stamping of the words “Hawaii” on U.S. currency.
“After the Pearl Harbor bombing, people in Hawai‘i hoarded money against an emergency such as a possible invasion,” wrote now retired Honolulu Advertiser Columnist Bob Krauss in a 2005 article. “Fearing that the Japanese might capture Hawaii and find all this money, the U.S. government on Jan. 2, 1942, made it illegal for individuals to own more than $200 in cash. Businesses could own $500,” Krauss continued.
In 1941, Hawaii was not yet a state, writes Nowiknow.com, and “was isolated both geographically and politically and — given the losses at Pearl Harbor especially — was the most likely widely-inhabited American candidate for a successful Japanese occupation. Any successful occupation would also allow the invading Japanese to seize, potentially, hundreds of millions of dollars in currency from Hawaiian financial institutions. With federal spending still in the tens of billions, such an outcome would have been significantly harmful to the American economy. The HAWAII-emblazoned bills were the solution.
“In January of 1942, the military governor of Hawaii (the territory was under the military’s control after the Pearl Harbor bombing) recalled most of the currency in the future state, with some allowances as to not pull all of the cash out of the islands’ economy. Five months later, bills called ‘Hawaii overprint notes’ were issued. The theory was simple: if Hawaii fell into Japanese hands, these bills would no longer be legal tender in the United States. This contingency plan never came into play.”
BYU-Hawaii History Professor Isaiah Walker said of the time period: “Citizens of the Territory of Hawaiʻi lived under martial law shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This would have been a very challenging time for the people of Hawaiʻi. My grandmother was one of them. She remembered the mandatory blackouts, people opening and reading your mail and listening in on your personal phone calls. The confiscation of currency was another adjustment that everyday people had to endure. Although they reprinted and returned old money with newly (and distinctly) marked bills, I am sure it was still a challenge for the local people and the local economy.”
Krauss says after the Pearl Harbor attack, people in Hawaii patriotically turned over their cash – $200 million worth. “Then the government had to burn all this money,” he wrote. “It was taken to Nuuanu Mortuary, but the crematory there couldn't handle such a mass of paper currency and securities. So the rest of it went up in smoke at the Aiea Sugar Plantation mill.
“To keep Hawai‘i's economic wheels turning, the government printed Hawaiian money,” Krauss explained. The bills had “HAWAII" printed on the back in big letters and on the front in smaller letters in two places. “You couldn't spend regular money in Honolulu. It had to have ‘HAWAII’ printed on it,” Krauss said.
Gathering information from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco website and the Treasury Department, the website Infoplease.com says, “Not only were $1 bills stamped, but $5, $10, and $20 San Francisco Reserve notes also featured the brown seal and serial numbers that the Bureau calls the ‘Hawaii overprint.’ This was done in July 1942 to keep Hawaii's paper money isolated from the rest of the U.S. in case Japan invaded Hawaii.”
The U.S. Dept. of the Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, continues Infoplease.com “redeems all genuine United States currency at face value only, and does not render opinions concerning the numismatic value of old or rare currencies. If you wish to have your notes appraised, it is suggested that you contact a number of private collectors or dealers who are usually listed in the classified section of the telephone directory under the headings of ‘Coins’ and ‘Hobbies.’”
According to oldcurrencyvalues.com, some specific Hawaii-stamped bills are worth more than their face values. “The series of 1935A $1 Hawaii silver certificate in its simplest form sells for around $15. In today’s market even a choice uncirculated $1 Hawaii note sells for around $120. However, there are many varieties to the 1935A one dollar Hawaii notes that many astute collectors care about.”
Nowiknow.com adds, “Some Hawaii overprint bills — as well as some regular currency — have asterisks after their serial numbers. These bills, called ‘star notes,’ replaced bills that had errors rendering them unsuitable for circulation. In order to keep the bill count correct, the serial numbers are re-used, with the asterisk included as an indicator that another bill with that number also may exist somewhere.”
In Krauss’ 2005 article, he gives two examples of people wondering about the value of Hawaii-stamped money they found or saved.
“On Feb. 27, 1980, a do-it-yourselfer was repainting an attic in a Manoa house when he found a stash of Hawaii money, 1,793 bills in $1, $5, $10 and $20 denominations worth $100,000. Krause said reportedly the lucky home-repairer turned the money over to the police. After 45 days, when nobody claimed the money, he was able to keep it.”
Krauss also referenced Don Medcalf, of Hawaiian Islands Stamp and Coin in downtown Honolulu, who said he knew of “a woman in Wahiawa who had saved $45,000 of Hawaii money in $20 bills. He advised her to spend it because it was worn and worth no more than its face value. Collectors want only crisp, unused bills. It is still legal tender, and so much of the money was printed that it is still plentiful.”
Krauss said on April 21, 1944, the restriction to use only Hawaii-marked money in the islands was repealed and “the bills circulated worldwide, including the Mainland. In April 1946, the Hawai'i money was withdrawn here and replaced with regular U.S. currency.”
Editor’s Note: The Hawaii-stamped dollar bill shown with this article was given to a tow-truck driver, John Charles Morrison, near Chico, Calif., in mid-November. He is the author’s nephew.
Writer: LeeAnn Lambert