(WKYT) - In the lead up to America turning 250 years old, we are looking back at every day in ‘This Day In History.’

On this day in history, in 1786, Congress unanimously picked the dollar as the monetary unit for America.

August 8 is also National Dollar Day, which is observed to mark this important event.

The new American monetary unit was based widely on the Spanish silver dollar.

And, another fun fact, the dollar sign was also based on the Spanish-American symbol for the peso.

The total height of the walk was 1,350 feet in the air.

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