Doug Hamilton holds a $10 bill bearing the portrait of his direct ancestor, Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton and others are trying to persuade the Treasury Department to change its plan to alter the bill as part of the effort to include a portrait of a woman on paper money.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Doug Hamilton is just fine with plans to put a woman’s portrait on U.S. paper money, but he’d prefer it if the Treasury Department would leave the $10 bill alone — particularly the prominent visage of his great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Alexander Hamilton.

The 10-spot is a source of family pride in Hamilton’s house in suburban Columbus, a dignified symbol of the historical importance of his ancestor, whose picture has been on it since 1929. So naturally, Hamilton started making some noise when he heard about the proposal that has Alexander Hamilton sharing the note with a deserving woman yet to be chosen.

The 64-year-old salesman for IBM has joined a growing number of voices in a backlash against what he calls the “diminishing” of Hamilton, the first secretary of the Treasury who founded the nation’s banking system.

“He’s the father of paper money,” says Doug Hamilton, who has a son and grandson carrying the name of their famous ancestor.

He’s urging people to sign a petition on the White House “We The People” website, and this weekend he’ll be preaching the Hamiltonian gospel at a series of annual events in New York and New Jersey planned around the anniversary of Alexander Hamilton’s death on July 12, 1804, a day after his duel with Aaron Burr.

The trip also will include a preview of the hip-hop musical “Hamilton,” based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton, opening on Broadway.

Outcry over Hamilton’s possible demotion has been somewhat lost in the wave of excitement over the inclusion of a woman’s portrait on paper currency. The Treasury Department says the $10 bill was chosen because it’s up next for a redesign to improve anti-counterfeiting features. The new bill would go into circulation in 2020.

Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said this week he’s sticking with the plan, despite critics arguing a woman should be featured on the $20 bill in place of Andrew Jackson, whom many historians view less favorably because of his treatment of Native Americans and his ownership of slaves.