Hawaii Currency – Emergency World War II Currency for the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaii notes, as they are generally called by collectors, were printed for the Hawaiian Islands for use during World War II. The idea was that if the money supply in Hawaii was taken over by the Japanese that the United States could devalue any money that said Hawaii on it. Of course that event never happened, and today we have wonderful collectible currency associated with a popular state. Hawaii notes are still good today at face value, but we certainly don’t recommend spending them.
Most new collectors are attracted to Hawaii silver certificates and federal reserve notes because they are different but they fall into many collecting categories. Plus, Hawaii notes are very affordable in circulated grades. You could go to ebay right now and put a Hawaii denomination set together for less than $200.
Hawaii notes were printed for the one, five, ten, and twenty dollar denominations. The lower the denomination, the more plentiful the supply is for that note. Hawaii notes present several collecting possibilities. One can focus on a purely denomination set. However, other opportunities like stars, blocks, mules, and errors can make the series challenging and fun to pursue. Below you will find a picture of each of the six types of Hawaii notes and a link to more information about each one. Don’t forget to read more about Hawaii star notes as well. We also have some brief information about Hawaii misprints.
We are also aggressive buyers of Hawaii notes. Please contact us and tell us what you have.
