Pocket Change-The History of American Coins
devider

It seems American coins must have been around since the arrival of the colonists in America, but although Spain established a mint in 1535, in Mexico City with some coins moving in and out of the colonies, it took until the early 1600's for America to adopt its own coinage into the money system. Early American coins were in fact quite scarce. For one reason, Britain restricted the export of gold and silver to the colonies, and when it was sent, it was often hoarded. Because of this lack of coins, colonists turned to bartering and the use of commodity money, which was mostly farm product. Both of these forms of trade were undesirable, due to the risks involved. Sometimes contriving a way to pay might actually create a bigger loss and/or there could be spoilage of trade items. A known form of exchange was that of the American Indians Wampum, which was nothing more than a string of beads or shells, but this was really only useful when dealing with Indians directly.

Eventually, coins began to appear in 1651, when the first mint was opened in Massachusetts and John Hull began striking coins made of silver with a "NE" for New England. This was the beginning of American coinage. Later other mints sprung up throughout the colonies and the use of both these and the coins that arrived from Spain and came through Mexico were traded. The first official U.S. mint was then established after President Washington signed it into law, in April of 1792. By that fall, six pounds of copper was purchased for the purpose of making coins and three coin presses arrived from Europe. One month later the first coins, were patterned and struck.



The Penny


While walking along almost any city street, one is bound to see a penny or two that has dropped to the street or sidewalk, but most people ignore it and move on. While the penny has taken a backseat to all other coins value-wise, it is money none-the-less. Without it, all pricing would have to be rounded up, resulting in higher prices for everything the consumer purchases. Children however, would never walk by a penny on the street and realize that saving all the pennies they can find, will soon add up to some serious cash.

The penny's design has changed over the years, but not as often as with other coins. Originally named after the British penny, the U.S. penny is 0.750 inches in diameter. It was first created by Benjamin Franklin and minted in 1787; it was made from pure copper. In 1861, the Indian head penny with a wreath on the shield was unveiled. Today's Lincoln head penny first appeared in 1909, with Lincoln's profile appearing on the one side of the penny, this completely replaced the "Indian Head" in 1943. It was made of steel because copper had to be used by the military. The Lincoln Head penny has existed for so long, that it has become the longest running coin type ever in the United States.


  • U.S. Mint current designs, the background of the penny and its current specifications
  • Wake Forest University article: Professor's research supports eliminating penny
  • U.S. Treasury Fact Sheets: Currency & Coins - History of the Lincoln Cent


The Nickel


A nickel is so named because it is made from nickel, although the 5-cent coin was not originally known by that name, it was called a half disme, meaning half a dime and it is 0.835 inches in diameter. In 1883, the Liberty Head nickel was introduced, but was not of a popular design, so by 1890, it was felt a change was needed. Beginning in March of 1913 and running through 1938, the "Buffalo" (a misnomer for Bison) or "Indian Head" nickel were in use. James E. Fraser created it with a portrait of one of three Indian chiefs on one side and a bison on the other. In 2006, a recreation of the buffalo nickel in 24-carat gold was struck as a collectible. In that same year, a likeness of Thomas Jefferson was created for the front of the nickel; based on a portrait by Rembrandt Peale from the 1800's.



The Dime


The dime has been in production since 1796, and is the smallest of the U.S. coins at 0.705 inches in diameter. Beginning with the Draped Bust dime, changes continued and designs went through the "Capped Bust", "Seated Liberty", and "Barber" dimes until 1916, when the "Mercury dime" or "Winged Liberty Head", was created by Adolph Weinman, which depicts Lady Liberty wearing a winged cap. The dime was so named for its resemblance to the messenger god Mercury and ran through 1945, when a design by U.S. Mint chief engraver John Sinnock was struck. It was created after the death of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1945 and released on what would have been his birthday in 1946.




The Quarter


The very first quarter was struck in 1796 and featured Lady Liberty on one side and an eagle on the other, it was and is 0.955 inches in diameter and has a rippled edge. There was no value shown on the quarter until 1804 when the mint added "25c," then in 1838, "QUAR. DOL." was added and finally changed in 1892, to "quarter dollar." John Flanagan originally sculpted the figure head of President George Washington used on today's quarter, which began circulating in 1932. The quarter seems to be ever changing because of the flexibility in design space and its popularity, although often the designs are used for a limited time, such as during the bicentennial. There were also quarters struck representing each state in the United States, each depicting a design chosen by the individual state and issued in order of statehood over a series of years, until finalizing the series in 2009. In 2010, five more quarters depicting national parks were also added.




Other Coins


While pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters are the norm, other not as commonly used coins remain a part of the coinage system. These coins are rarely seen, as people tend to collect or hoard them. One of these coins would be the half-dollar or fifty cent piece. The obverse side of the original half-dollar shows a portrait of President John F. Kennedy created by sculptor/engraver Gilroy Roberts. The reverse side shows a representation of the presidential seal, created by sculptor/engraver Frank Gasparro. This coin is 1.205 inches in diameter and has more stars than any other coin in circulation. It was first minted in 1794 and ran until 1948, when Benjamin Franklin's likeness was used for the obverse side, with the Liberty bell on the other side. A few other changes to the coin have come and gone over the years, one being the diameter, which changed to 1.043 inches and while the first was made of Cupro-Nickel, those that followed were made of Manganese-Brass.

Since beginning in 1794, dollar coins have been minted intermittently. As of 2010, there were three golden colored coins in production: The Presidential (Issued in 2007), which honored the four past presidents, Buchanan, Filmore, Lincoln, and Pierce. The Sacajawea Golden (issued in 2000) pictures the Shoshone Indian guide, who helped explorers Lewis and Clark in 1804. The Native American one-dollar coins (issued in 2009) were spawned from the Sacajawea and honored tribes and individuals on the obverse side. These coins are scheduled to continue through 2016. Previous coins were usually silver in color, such as with the Liberty dollar, with varying individuals on the obverse. The word dollar is taken from the German word "Thaler," which was a large silver coin.


  • American Currency an online service of clipart of U.S. coins, showing both sides with short descriptions.
  • Cornell University Denominations, specifications, and the design of coins
  • Back in Time Sacajawea-A Shoshone Woman's Impact on the Lewis and Clark Expedition and how she was honored
  • Coin Quest an interactive web quest designed for Grade One
  • Legendary Coins and Currency learning resources, including games, glossary of terms, the history of coins and currency, and web links.