As with many word histories, the exact root of the word “buck” for one unit of currency is difficult to say. However, the leading theory is backed up by a fair bit of documentation, specifically, it is thought that a dollar is called a “buck” thanks to our four-legged friends the deer.
Due to the scarcity of any hard currency, the barter system was firmly in place, especially on the frontier. And at a store in the early 1700s, the going exchange rate for a cask of whiskey was listed “5 bucks”, meaning five deerskins.
In 1718, for example, pioneers knew that one tanned deerskin could be traded for one pound of black powder, 40 bullets or 20 flints. A rifle could be obtained for 25 buck skins, a pistol or coat for 12, a blanket for six and an ax for four bucks.
One of the earliest references to the term bucks as currency was in 1748, over 40 years before the first U.S. dollar was ever minted.
As prolific as deer are at the present time, it’s easy to see how a buck skin could be a common medium of exchange. There is also evidence that a “buck” didn’t simply mean one deerskin, but may have meant multiple skins, depending on quality. For example, skins from deer killed in the winter were considered superior to those killed in the summer because the winter coat was thicker.
It is thought that the highest quality skins were generally assigned a one to one value with one skin equaling one buck. In contrast, for lower quality skins, it might take several of them to be valued at a single buck.
You’ve heard of the gold standard, well, enter the Buck standard. For instance, there is one documented trade where six high quality beaver skins or twelve high quality rabbit pelts each equaled one buck skin.
This use of skins as a medium of exchange gradually lessened, and once the U.S. dollar was officially introduced after the passing of the Coinage Act of 1792, the dollar quickly became the leading item used as a medium of exchange, but the term “buck”…stuck.
For those of you scoring at home, the value of a fully-tanned premium buck skin today is around 75 bucks, plus shipping. We’ll chalk it up to inflation.
As we close this entry, we quote former president Harry S. Truman…in that…the buck…stops here.
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