United States Savings Bonds are a type of debt issued by the Treasury Department. These bonds are non-marketable securities, meaning that they are not exchangeable between parties once issued. Savings Bonds can only be redeemed by the owner of record or, in the case of death, their estate. The U.S. Savings Bond program began in 1935 during the Roosevelt administration and continues today. Known originally as Defense Bonds and War Savings Bonds, these securities helped raise some $185 billion for WWII alone. Six million volunteers helped to sell some one billion individual securities for the war effort. After the war, the Savings Bond program continued alongside the sale of traditional Treasury securities. Larger war bond certificates eventually gave way to the punch-card (and later paper stock) smaller Savings Bonds most Americans are familiar with. Known often as gifts for graduations, birthdays, and other commemorations, Savings Bonds have played an important part in the household finances for many American families. As with all things paper, the Treasury Department has migrated to the electronic sale and record-keeping of these securities. The sale of all paper Savings Bonds ended in 2012, save one exception thus far: individuals can request that part of their IRS refund be issued as a paper Series I Savings Bond.
*Please note that the U.S. Savings Bonds presented here have been restored for privacy and display purposes.
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1945 $25 Series E War Savings Bond
10-year Maturity
Interest Rate 2.9% per annum
Issued at a discount to its redemption value, this WWII-era Savings Bond was part of the Seventh Series of the war loan drive. Dating from May 14th to June 30th, 1945, this drive raised some $26.5 billion over the course of six weeks.
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1969 $100 United States Savings Note
4½ -year Maturity
Interest Rate 4.3% per annum
Issued at a discount to its redemption value, the U.S. Savings Note was a short-term Savings Bond. Known as Freedom Shares, this short-lived program started under the administration of LBJ. The program ended sales in 1970.
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1970 $100 United States Savings Note
4½ -year Maturity
Interest Rate 4.3% per annum
![1979 $1000 Savings Bond Series H (restored).jpeg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4a9693_8beea8fa877341dfacc645899d21fe09~mv2.jpeg/v1/fill/w_749,h_331,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/1979%20%241000%20Savings%20Bond%20Series%20H%20(restored).jpeg)
1979 $1,000 Series H Savings Bond
30-year Maturity
Interest Rate 8.5% per annum
The Series H Savings Bonds were introduced in 1952, and were a current interest alternative to Series E Bonds.. Purchased at face value, bonds paid a fixed rate of interest every six months. Bondholders could redeem their securities for their full face value after holding them for six months. Series H bondholders could extended (twice) the maturity periods of 10 years (each), if they so desired until the Treasury retired the Series H program.The last bonds were issued in December of 1979
![1980 $1000 Series HH Savings Bond](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4a9693_b8ed5e8e744045e3892a26d7e1c478ea~mv2_d_4373_1911_s_2.jpeg/v1/fill/w_749,h_327,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/1980%20%241000%20Series%20HH%20Savings%20Bond%20copy_j.jpeg)
1980 $1,000 Series HH Savings Bond
20-year Maturity
Interest Rate 1.5% per annum
Series HH Savings Bonds were issued between January 1980 and August 2004. Sold at their face value, these bonds were available only in exchange for Series EE or Series E bonds, or upon reinvestment of matured Series H bonds. The interest rate was set for the first ten years of the bond, and then was reset for the remaining ten year maturity. Series HH Bonds were current income securities, paying their holders interest on a semiannual basis. They were exempt from state and local income tax. The Treasury Department allowed the older bonds' interest to continue to be deferred for federal income tax reporting purposes as part of owning an HH bond.
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1985 $50 Series EE Savings Bond
10-year Maturity
Interest Rate 7.5% per annum
![1988 $200 Savings Bond Series EE (restor](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4a9693_285ed5aa304541acacd2949f554c2fe3~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_674,h_291,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/1988%20%24200%20Savings%20Bond%20Series%20EE%20(restor.png)
1988 $200 Series EE Savings Bond
12-year Maturity
Interest Rate 6% per annum
Series EE Savings Bonds were sold at half their face-value. These bonds were exempt from state and local income tax.
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2007 $5,000 Series I Savings Bond
30-year Maturity
Interest Rate Adjusted to Inflation
Series I Savings Bonds paid interest based on two considerations: a fixed rate of interest remaining the same for the life of the bond along with a semiannually adjusted interest rate based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) . This second factor is calculated to measure inflation. These bonds were exempt from state and local income tax.
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