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Concept
Ithaca Hours
Summary
The Ithaca HOUR was a local currency used in Ithaca, New York, though it is now no longer in circulation. It was one of the longest-running local currency systems, and inspired other similar systems in Madison, Wisconsin; Santa Barbara, California;
Corvallis, Oregon; and a proposed system in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. One Ithaca HOUR was valued at US$10 and was generally recommended to be used as payment for one hour's work, although the rate is negotiable.
Ithaca HOURS were not backed by national currency and cannot be freely converted to national currency, although some businesses did agree to buy them.
HOURS were printed on high-quality paper and used faint graphics that would be difficult to reproduce. Each bill was stamped with a serial number, to discourage counterfeiting.
In 2002, a one-tenth hour bill was introduced, partly due to the encouragement and funding from Alternatives Federal Credit Union and feedback from retailers who complained about the awkwardness of only having larger denominations with which to work; the bills bear the signatures of both HOURS president Steve Burke and the president of AFCU.
Ithaca HOUR notes began to fall into disuse for several reasons. First, the founder of the system, Paul Glover, moved out of the area. While in Ithaca, Glover had acted as an evangelist and networker for HOURS, helping spread their use and helping businesses find ways to spend HOURS they had received. Secondly, the use of HOURS declined as a result of the general shift away from cash transactions towards electronic transfers with debit or credit cards. Glover emphasized that every local currency needs at least one full-time networker to "promote, facilitate and troubleshoot" currency circulation.
Ithaca HOURS were started by Paul Glover in November 1991. The system has historical roots in scrip and alternative and local currencies that proliferated in America during the Great Depression.
While doing research into local economics during 1989, Glover had seen an "Hour" note issued by 19th century British industrialist Robert Owen to his workers for spending at his company store.
Official source
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