The Broadway musical, Hamilton, may have saved Hamilton the man. At least, it may have saved the real Alexander Hamilton's place on the ten-dollar bill. There was a movement afoot to redesign the ten-dollar bill and honor an American woman. That would have removed a key founding father, who had a major hand in creating many of the important govenmental institutions, from the bill.
Then, came the best-selling biography of Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow and Hamilton the smash musical. All the public exposure quickly brought about a pro-Hamilton movement, which didn't want to see their 10-spot change its face. Lin-Manuel Miranda the creator, and star of the musical, said on Wednesday that he had gotten assurances from the Secretary of Treasury Jacob J. Law that fans of Hamilton won't be dissappointed in the bill's new design.
According to the NYTimes, a spokeswoman for the Treasury had this to say about the meeting, "On Monday, Secretary Lew welcomed Lin-Manuel Miranda to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The secretary and Miranda talked about the enduring mark Alexander Hamilton left on our nation's history, and the Secretary provided a brief tour of Hamilton's possessions and portraits on display at the Treasury Department. The Secretary thanked Miranda for the ingenious way in which he has been able to tell Hamilton's story and ignite a renewed interest in one of our nation's Founding Fathers. Secretary Lew also reinterated his commitment to continue to honor Alexander Hamilton on the 10-dollar bill."
Hamilton served under George Washington in the Revolutinary War, was very opposed to slavery, unlike some of the other more famous founding fathers, such as Thomas Jefferson. According to MarketWatch, he also was one of the authors of the Federalist Papers, which argued for a strong central goverment. Hamilton helped set up the banking system and served as the first treasury secretary. Fans of Hamilton have lobbied to change the $20 dollar bill which has Andrew Jackson on it.
