Celebrating America's National Parks $2 Bill - Yosemite (2024)

FAQs

Is the Yellowstone $2 bill real? ›

The New England Mint was offering $2 bills commemorating our national parks -- including Yellowstone. Just $10, the ad said, for a real $2 bill enhanced with a colorful illustration of the park.

This bill, signed into law by President Lincoln on June 30, 1864, represents the first time the federal government acted to protect and preserve scenic lands.

Yosemite National Park was designated by an Act of Congress on October 1, 1890, making it the third national park in the United States, after Yellowstone (1872) and Sequoia (1890). Friday, October 1, 2010 marks the 120th birthday of the park.

If your $2 bill dates back to 1886 and has a red seal with a silver certificate, you're in luck. That bill is worth $4,500. A number of other iterations of the $2 bills with a red seal can also fetch well over a $1,000. Bills with brown seals are also very valuable.

If the $2 bill was minted and printed before 1976, it would likely be worth more than its face value on the collectibles market. In some cases, it might be worth only $2.25. The highest value is $4,500 or more for uncirculated notes from 1890, although most of those bills range in value from $550 to $2,500.

Reservations are required to visit Yosemite National Park during peak season and hours in 2024. In 2024 Yosemite National Park will once again require reservations for entry during peak visitation seasons and hours at all entrances besides Hetch Hetchy.

Can You Stay Overnight in Yosemite? There are many options for people wanting to stay overnight inside Yosemite National Park. In-park accommodations range from grand hotels to tent-cabins and campgrounds, including a variety of vacation rental cabins or bed and breakfast options to choose from.

Yosemite means literally “those who kill” (Yos, “to kill,” the modifier e, “one who,” and the plural suffix -meti). It was used by the surrounding Miwok tribes. The Yosemite people were referred to as killers by these surrounding tribes, who feared them.

Why is it called Yosemite? ›

The name Yosemite is simply a corruption of the term which the southern Miwoks applied to any species of bear and particularly to the grizzly,² and was given to the valley, as we shall see, because the white people who first came in contact with its native inhabitants called them Yosemites.

Yosemite, on the other hand, is typical of older, traditional national parks in that almost all of the land within its boundaries is owned by the Federal government and administered by the National Park Service.

1. Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve: This vast park in Alaska has no roads or trails. With just over 11,000 recreational visits last year, it was the least-visited of the 63 national parks.

In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed an Act of Congress in which Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove were granted to the State of California, to be preserved for all time as a nature preserve...the first State Park in this country.... for the enjoyment of the people... the Yosemite Grant.

1. Yosemite National Park | CA. Millions of people come to Yosemite National Park each year to see jagged peaks, glaciers, lush meadows and some of the world's tallest waterfalls.

A circulated $2 bill, even if it's from the 1800s, may only be worth a few hundred dollars, the auction service reports. Newer bills, like one printed in 2003, could also have significant value. A $2 bill recently sold at an auction for $2,400, according to Heritage Auction. (It later resold for $4,000.)

Today, the general public is still largely unfamiliar with the notes because they are not widely circulated and continue to be hoarded. The common misconception that the $2 note is no longer being produced also remains, though $2 notes have been printed since 1862, except for a 10-year hiatus between 1966 and 1976.