The $500 bill: in circulation until 1969, but still legal tender! Currently, the highest denominated piece of American currency that’s in circulation is the $100 bill.  The bill has gone through a couple of design changes in recent years, but it still has Benjamin Franklin on the front, and Independence Hall on the back.  This is as high as American currency has gone since 1969.  Before then, the United States used to issue larger bills. The next highest denomination was the $500 bill, which featured President William McKinley’s portrait on the front.  (No bills over $100 had pictures on the back—just stylized printings of the denominations written out in words, festooned with curlicues and the like, like you see below.  Older bills of this size that predate the 1930s often did have pictures on the backs.)  These higher denominated bills were as follows: $500 – Pres. William McKinley $1000 – Pres. Grover Cleveland $5000 – Pres. Jam...