1x 1899 $1 'Black Eagle' Large Size Silver Certificate Grades VF/XF. Ranked #16 in the 100 Greatest American Currency Notes, the Series 1899 Black Eagle note is from an era when paper money was backed by precious silver, as the issue bears the statement ONE SILVER DOLLAR PAYABLE TO THE BEARER ON DEMAND. It doesn’t take much work to figure out the nickname of the 1899 $1 silver certificate. A quick glance shows three vignettes, an eagle, Ulysses S Grant, and Abraham Lincoln. Somewhere along the way the collecting world decided that this note should be called a “black eagle.” The name has stuck. Whether you have been collected for a week or your entire life, you certainly know what a black eagle is. Grant and Lincoln often get overlooked. That might be for the best since both men are closely associated with several other large size pieces of currency.