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| Alexander Hamilton |
I have just finished "The Quartet" by Joseph J. Ellis, in which he describes his conclusion that four men were key to making the transition from a confederation to a nation in the drafting and passage of our American Constitution. Those four men were George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison. While the analysis by Ellis of the importance of those four may not be broadly shared by all historians, he certainly made a strong case for the key roles they played.
Last week's blog did not bring much of an outcry to secure Hamilton's place on the $10 bill. One follower did write: "What is wrong with the ten the way it is? ...people need to forget changing the gender on the money. How many people actually use paper money?"
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| Sacagawea |
Another follower suggested adding a $25 bill to accommodate the call for a woman's image on our paper currency. A couple of people suggested using Lady Liberty.
In fact, if there is a great outcry to remove Hamilton and put a woman on the $10 bill, it was not reflected in replies from blog followers. The follower who asked why any change was needed did suggest Sacagawea might be an appropriate choice if the change to a woman's image were necessary. The detail at left of Sacagawea with Lewis and Clark is from a painting by Edgar Samuel Paxson located in the Montana State Capitol. I did not receive any chorus of supporters demanding that Hamilton remain on the bill, nor did names of female replacements flood the comments on facebook or this blog.
My survey indicated that people who read my blog really don't give much attention to the faces that appear on our paper currency Perhaps if I had included the cost involved in making a change, I might have received more responses!
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