“In God We Trust” is the official motto of the United States of America. It first appeared in 1864 on the two-cent coin and was not printed on banknotes until 1957. The decision to immortalize the motto on coins was made by then-Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase, following a letter from a Pennsylvania clergyman who wished for some depiction of God on currency.
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The Religious Motto Began Appearing on Coins at the Request of Citizens
The main impetus for including God on currency was a letter written by Reverend Mark R. Watkinson of Ridley Township, Pennsylvania, dated November 13, 1861:
Dear Sir:
You are about to submit your annual report to Congress respecting the affairs of the national finances.
One fact touching our currency has hitherto been seriously overlooked. I mean the recognition of the Almighty God in some form on our coins.
You are probably a Christian. What if our Republic were not shattered beyond reconstruction? Would not the antiquaries of succeeding centuries rightly reason from our past that we were a heathen nation? What I propose is that instead of the goddess of liberty we shall have next inside the 13 stars a ring inscribed with the words PERPETUAL UNION; within the ring, the all-seeing eye, crowned with a halo; beneath this eye, the American flag, bearing in its field stars equal to the number of the States united; in the folds of the bars the words GOD, LIBERTY, LAW.
This would make a beautiful coin, to which no possible citizen could object. This would relieve us from the ignominy of heathenism. This would place us openly under the Divine protection we have personally claimed. From my heart, I have felt our national shame in disowning God as not the least of our present national disasters. To you first I address a subject that must be agitated.
Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase responded to the letter and instructed Philadelphia Mint Director James Pollock to design new coins that would include an appropriate motto. Suggestions included “Our Country; Our God,” “God, Our Trust,” “God and Our Country,” and “Perpetual Union.” After an exchange of letters, the Secretary ultimately approved the motto “In God We Trust.”
The motto first appeared on the two-cent coin after the passage of the Coinage Act on April 22, 1864. Later, it was also minted on one-cent coins (1908) and three-cent coins (between 1865 and 1889).
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“In God We Trust” Has Been the Official Motto of the USA Since 1956
In 1955, Congress approved, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed, a law mandating the inclusion of the motto on all coins and banknotes. The inscription first appeared on banknotes in the following year, beginning with the one-dollar bill from the 1957 series. Other denominations were updated gradually into the early 1960s.
In 1956, Congress passed Public Law 84-851, officially designating “In God We Trust” as the motto of the United States of America. During the Cold War era, this underscored religious faith in opposition to communist atheism.
The motto can also be seen on some public buildings, such as schools, government offices, and courthouses.
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