The first official currency of the United States was the Continental Currency, which was issued by the Continental Congress during the American Revolution. This currency was introduced in 1775 and was used to finance the war effort against Great Britain. The Continental Currency was printed in various denominations, including dollars, shillings, and pence.

However, the Continental Currency faced many challenges, including rampant counterfeiting and inflation. The lack of a central banking system and the overprinting of the currency led to its rapid devaluation. By the end of the Revolutionary War, the Continental Currency had become virtually worthless, and the phrase "not worth a Continental" was coined to describe something of little or no value.

After the failure of the Continental Currency, the United States adopted the U.S. dollar as its official currency in 1792. The U.S. dollar was established by the Coinage Act of 1792 and was based on the Spanish dollar, which was widely used in the American colonies at the time. The U.S. dollar was backed by gold and silver reserves and was minted in various denominations, including coins and paper currency.

Today, the U.S. dollar is the world's primary reserve currency and is used in international trade and finance. The Federal Reserve, the central banking system of the United States, is responsible for issuing and regulating the U.S. dollar. The U.S. dollar is represented by the symbol "$" and is divided into 100 cents.

For more information on the history of the U.S. currency, you can visit the History Channel website. You can also learn more about the U.S. dollar and the Federal Reserve by visiting the Federal Reserve website.

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