![An image of very old US currency bills, the front and back of a $20 bill](https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/courses-images/wp-content/uploads/sites/2985/2018/03/08162448/US-20-LT-1880-Fr-145-300x259.jpg)
In [latex]1784[/latex], Thomas Jefferson proposed a decimal currency system for the United States based on the Spanish dollar, with coins for [latex]10[/latex] dollars, [latex]1[/latex] dollar, 1⁄10 dollar, and 1⁄100 dollar. One argument he advanced in favor of this system was that the 1⁄100-dollar coin would be similar in value to existing copper coins. The initial currency of the United States was minted in [latex]1792[/latex] with the dollar being equal to [latex]100[/latex] cents. Working with decimals is essential when calculating or analyzing most currency data, whether it be from historical or modern times!