Man who got an unusual $20 bill from ATM finds out it's from 1940s —people advice him not to spend it

Even as the dollar’s value seems to fluctuate daily, vintage currency notes and coins are on the rise. One Massachusetts man discovered this first-hand when he found an old $20 bill in an ATM machine. While the Federal Reserve estimates the life of a $20 bill in circulation to be 7.8 years, in this case, Ronald McKernan pulled out the bill which was printed around the 1940s. McKernan shared a photo of the bill on the Reddit forum r/mildlyinteresting.

Story of the 70-year-old $20 bill 

McKernan told NewsWeek that he was withdrawing $100 cash to spend on an upcoming vacation. While counting the money, he noticed that there was a very old bill among several brand-new bills. He shared that the bill looked and felt different from the others, which prompted him to take a closer look. That's when he realized that the note belonged to the series 1934C, which made McKernan think it was from 1934.

However, on the Reddit post, one user pointed out that the serial number did not mean that it was printed in the same year. "Small tweak: the bill itself isn't from 1934. The Series 1934C bills were printed between July 1946 and May 1949," wrote u/evilshandie. 

Here's how much the bill could be worth

While some users debated the origin year of the bill, others discussed if the currency could be used and if it should be used. The general consensus was that the note could legally be used but nearly everyone suggested McKernan not to spend it. Several users claimed that the bill could be more than the face value given the great condition of it.

"In this condition, it’s worth slightly more than $20. Maybe $23-25," suggested user u/ShutterBun. Listings on eBay show that bills from the same series are on sale for over $40.  Despite the value, McKernan has no plans to let go of the bill. He told NewsWeek that he will hold on to the bill as he thinks it's pretty cool. 

While McKernan's $20 bill may not be worth a lot, some pennies from the same era, that is 1943-1944, could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

According to Cointrackers.com, certain coins, like the 1944 Steel Wheat penny in mint condition could be worth as much as $408,000 in mint condition, and up to $10,000 in average condition. Furthermore, 1943 copper pennies are also unique and highly valuable due to an uncommon reason. As per an NBC report, these pennies minted during World War II were supposed to be made of steel, so that more copper could be directed towards manufacturing war supplies.

However, due to an error, some pennies were made of only copper, making them a unique find worth up to $250,000. However, in 1944, pennies were supposed to go back to copper and any coins made of steel would be a result of an error, making them unique as well.