The United States twenty-dollar bill, also known as the “double sawbuck,” features the portrait of Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States. The bill was first issued in 1928 and has undergone several design changes over the years.
Andrew Jackson was born in 1767 in the Waxhaw region of the Carolinas, and he was the son of poor Scottish-Irish immigrants. He served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and was taken prisoner by the British. After the war, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1787. He then moved to Tennessee and became a successful lawyer and land speculator.
In 1796, Jackson was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, but he resigned after just one year to serve as a U.S. senator from Tennessee. In 1812, he became a major general in the U.S. Army and led American forces in several important battles during the War of 1812. His most famous victory was the Battle of New Orleans, which took place in January 1815.
Jackson’s military successes made him a national hero, and he was elected president in 1828. As president, Jackson was known for his populist views and his opposition to the political and economic elite. He was a strong supporter of states’ rights and the expansion of the United States into the western territories.
During his presidency, Jackson also signed the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which forced Native American tribes in the southeastern United States to leave their ancestral lands and move to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). This policy, which became known as the Trail of Tears, resulted in the deaths of thousands of Native Americans.
Despite his controversial policies, Jackson remains a popular and influential figure in American history. His portrait has appeared on the twenty-dollar bill since 1928, and his legacy is celebrated by many Americans, particularly those who identify with his populist views.
The current design of the twenty-dollar bill was introduced in 2003 and features several anti-counterfeiting measures, including a watermark of Jackson’s portrait and a security thread that glows under ultraviolet light. The back of the bill features a vignette of the White House, as well as a quote from Jackson: “The course of this government is too much like a splendid procession to some untimely grave.”
Overall, Andrew Jackson’s portrait on the twenty-dollar bill serves as a reminder of his complicated legacy as a military hero, populist president, and controversial figure in American history.