Today is the birthday of science fiction author Harry Harrison, who is best known for his Deathworld [1] trilogy. (He was born in 1920 and died in 2012.)
On March 12, 1850 the first U.S. $20 gold piece was issued. The current bullion (melt) value of a $20 gold piece (not even considering any numismatic value) is about $1,185. Lesson learned: Trust gold, not paper.