## Currency Notes: In Pursuit of Freedom by Harriet Tubman

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Currency Notes: In Pursuit of Freedom by Harriet Tubman](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/fandd/issues/2024/03/currency-notes-in-pursuit-of-freedom-melinda-weir)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/publications/fandd/issues/2024/03/currency-notes-in-pursuit-of-freedom-melinda-weir/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/publications/fandd/issues/2024/03/currency-notes-in-pursuit-of-freedom-melinda-weir/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/publications/fandd/issues/2024/03/currency-notes-in-pursuit-of-freedom-melinda-weir/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Authors: MELINDA WEIR
- Published: March 4, 2024

---

### Overview
- Article title: "In Pursuit of Freedom"
- Author: MELINDA WEIR
- Publication: F&D Magazine
- Date: March 2024
- Summary finding: Harriet Tubman will be featured on three commemorative coins to be released this year.
- Legal and contextual note in source: "Opinions expressed in articles and other materials are those of the authors; they do not necessarily reflect IMF policy."

### Coin types and authorization
- Coins announced in January by the US Mint: $5 gold, $1 silver, and half-dollar clad coins.
- Law authorizing the coins was passed in 2022, the bicentennial of Tubman’s birth.
- Intended use: While the coins are legal tender, they are intended primarily as collector’s items and will not be in general circulation.

### Historical highlights cited
- Born into slavery in 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland.
- Thought to have made over a dozen high-risk missions to the South.
- Credited with leading an estimated 70 people to freedom.
- Roles: conductor on the Underground Railroad; later a nurse and Army scout for the Union Army in the US Civil War.
- Military distinction: First woman to lead an armed expedition in the US Civil War; one raid led to freedom for hundreds of enslaved people in South Carolina.
- Later-life activities: Gave speeches in support of women’s voting rights, civil rights, and health care.
- Death: Died in 1913 in Auburn, New York.

### Distribution proceeds and beneficiaries
- Surcharges from the sale of the coins will go to:
  - the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, and
  - the Harriet Tubman Home, Inc., a nonprofit in Auburn, New York.

### Additional notes
- Plans to feature Tubman on the US $20 banknote have been delayed in recent years.
- Credit line in the article: Alan Kolnik / Alamy Stock Photo

*F&D Magazine — "In Pursuit of Freedom", MELINDA WEIR, March 2024*

---

## Content in this bundle

- **Currency Notes: In Pursuit of Freedom**
  - [Currency Notes: In Pursuit of Freedom (Markdown version)](/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2024/03/currency-notes0324.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Currency Notes: In Pursuit of Freedom (PDF)](/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2024/03/currency-notes0324.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

---

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/fandd/issues/2024/03/currency-notes-in-pursuit-of-freedom-melinda-weir_