Mill (currency)

The mill is an abstract unit of US currency, equivalent to 1/1000 of a US Dollar. No coins were ever made in this denomination; the denomination is used sometimes in accounting. The term comes from the Latin mille, meaning 1,000.

The term was invented by the United States Congress in 1786, and was described as the "lowest money of accompt, of which 1000 shall be equal to the federal dollar". Coinage in this denomination was legislated at that time, but never carried out.

Tokens in this denomination were nevertheless issued by some states and local governments (and by some private interests), for such uses as payment of sales tax. These were of inexpensive material such as tin, aluminum, plastic, or paper. Rising inflation depreciated the value of these tokens; this in relation to the value of the materials used led to their almost complete abandonment (virtually none were made after the 1960s).