Hamilton, your time is up

Alexander Hamilton has been on the $10 bill 85 years.

That’s a good run.

Now a woman should replace him by 2020, or at least that’s Treasury Secretary Jack Lew’s plan for a redesigned $10 bill.

Hamilton fans need not feel slighted.

Hamilton replaced President Andrew Jackson on the $10 bill, and previous $10 bills in the 20th century alone featured several men, and also a bison.

Critics have said the $10 bill is the least-used of all denominations and that adding a woman to it is not much of an honor.

But Lew has said the bill is simply the next up for a redesign.

If former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, abolitionist Harriet Tubman or another hero of American history is chosen, that will immediately increase the popularity and usage of the $10.

Women have been honored on American currency and coins before, but not many: Susan B. Anthony, former first lady Martha Washington and the American Indian guide Sacagawea.

No matter which cash bill is chosen, the change is long overdue.

This story was originally published June 30, 2015 at 5:51 PM.