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| U.S. Nickel | |
| Value: | 0.05 US dollars |
| Mass: | 5.000 g |
| Diameter: | 21.21 mm |
| Thickness: | 1.95 mm |
| Edge: | plain |
| Composition: | 75% Cu, 25% Ni |
| Obverse | |
| Design: | Thomas Jefferson |
| Designer: | Felix Schlag |
| Design Date: | 1938 |
| Reverse | |
| Design: | Monticello |
| Designer: | Felix Schlag |
| Design Date: | 1938 |
The United States five cent coin, commonly called a nickel, is a unit of currency equaling one 1/20th of a United States dollar.
Nickels are 21.21 mm in diameter, 1.95 mm thick, with a plain edge. With the exception of a period during World War II, nickels have been made out of an alloy of 25% nickel and 75% copper.
The nickel's design since 1938 features a profile of President Thomas Jefferson on the obverse. From 1938 to 2003, Monticello was featured on the reverse. For 2004 and 2005, U.S nickels are featuring new designs to commemorate the bicentennials of the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition. These new designs are called the Westward Journey nickel series.
Shield nickels were the first nickel five cent piece minted in the United States. Before shield nickels, five cent pieces were small coins, called half dimes, that were composed primarily out of silver. Shield nickels were minted from 1866-1883. There is an early variety with rays passing from the 5 through the stars. These were minted only in 1866 and part of 1867. They were first minted in nickel due to shortages of small coinage due to silver hoarding during and after the Civil War. There was also political intrigue originating from the owner of the only nickel mine in the United States at the time.
There were many errors in the Shield nickels, because it was the mint's first experience with the hard metal. It is unusual to find a piece that does not have die cracks, and these trade for more in uncirculated condition, unlike many other coins where die cracks are considered merely an interesting variety. There are many overdates, doubled dates and other punch errors.
V Nickels were minted from 1883-1912 with a special minting of 5 pieces in 1913, making these pieces one of the most rare and valuable U.S. coins. One was auctioned in March 2001 for $1.8 million. These coins were made famous by a coin dealer from Texas who in the 1930s placed advertisements in newspapers throughout the U.S. offering $50 for one of these nickels. No one took him up on the offer, but numismaticists credit his search as contributing to increased interest in coin collecting.
The 1883 issue lacked the word "cents" . These were the same size as a five dollar gold piece, so some counterfeiters plated them with gold, and attempted to pass them off as $5 gold pieces. According to legend, a deaf-mute named Josh Tatum was the chief perpetrator of this fraud, and he could not be convicted because he simply gave the coins in payment for purchases of less than five cents, but did not protest if he was given change appropriate to a five-dollar coin. There is no historical record of Tatum outside of numismatic folklore, however, so the story may well be apocryphal .
The buffalo nickel (also known as the Indian head nickel) was produced from 1913 to 1938. Mint marks for the coins are are on the reverse, beneath the words "Five Cents" and above the rim. A "D" indicated the nickel was minted in Denver and an "S" means San Francisco; the absence of a mark meant the coin had been minted in Philadelphia.
The buffalo nickel, as designed by James Earle Fraser, featured a side-profile Native American on the front and a buffalo, on the back. The Indian profile is reportedly a composite of three chiefs: John Big Tree, Iron Tail and Two Moons. The model for the buffalo portrait was "Black Diamond" from New York City's Central Park Zoo. Fraser's design is generally considered to be among the best designs of any U.S. coin.
There was a type change in mid-1913 when the mound on the reverse was changed mid-year to an incuse flat plane because of wear problems. There was no change to the date placement, so the dates on many early buffalo nickels have been completely worn off. As the series progressed, the date was gradually struck with larger and bolder numerals, which ameliorated the problem.
Some dateless buffalo nickels can have their date determined by very small die markers. In addition to weak dates, many buffalo nickels - especially those minted in Denver or San Francisco in the 1920s - are found with the horn and/or tail on the reverse, or the word "LIBERTY" on the obverse, badly struck and lacking complete detail (1926-D is particularly noted for these defects).
Some 1.2 billion buffalo nickels were issued during the coin's 26-year lifespan, and only one date/mintmark combination (the 1926-S) had a mintage of less than 1 million. No buffalo nickels were made in 1922, 1932 and 1933 (the lack of 1922 nickels resulting from the Mint's placing a priority on silver dollar production in that year, with no nickels - and many other denominations - being issued in 1932 or 1933 due to the Great Depression).
Jefferson nickels have been made from 1938 to the present.
The reverse of the Jefferson nickel features Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, who is featured on the obverse. The Jefferson nickel was designed by Felix Schlag, who won a contest for the design. Production began in 1938 (note that there were also buffalo nickels issued in 1938).
From mid 1942 to 1945, so called "Wartime" composition nickels were created. These coins are 56% copper, 35% silver and 9% manganese. The only other US coin to use manganese are the current Sacagawea dollars. These coins are usually a bit darker than regular nickels, due to tarninshing of the silver, and feature the largest mint mark ever to grace a United States coin. The mint mark on these is above the dome on the reverse. If there is no mint mark there, then the coin was minted in Philadelphia. In the early 1980s, the mint mark was switched to the front of the coin, and P marks Philadelphia.
Jefferson nickels are one of the easiest sets of any denomination to collect from circulation. You can still find coins from the 1940s in circulation on occasion. Many Jefferson nickel collectors look for fully struck steps on the image of Monticello. Premiums are paid for coins with five or six full steps. These are fairly rare, even on current issues. Proofs and special mint set coins (1965-67) as well as matte proofs exist, and have value above the regular issued coins.
Throughout the 20th century, Congress allowed the U.S. Mint to make changes to coinage every 25 years without specific authorization. Since the 1990s the government had begun to response to lobbying in favor of changing coinage design. This led to the State Quarters series and in 2002, a proposal to change 2003 nickels as well. Initial proposals by the Mint had a new obverse based on a portrait by Gilbert Stuart, and a reverse with an American Indian and a bald eagle facing west.
Congressman Eric Cantor (R-Virginia), the Chief Deputy Majority Whip for his party, objected to the lack of consultation with Congress about their proposal, and was particularly concerned that Monticello, located in his district, would not return to the reverse of the nickel in 2006. Some raised the issue that the Mint's proposed new reverse did not relate specifically enough to Lewis & Clark or the Louisiana Purchase, the events that the proposed changes were meant to commemorate. This led to the enactment of Public Law 108-15, the American 5-cent Coin Design Continuity Act, in 2003. This act, originally dubbed the Keep Monticello on the Nickel Act by Cantor, modified the United States Code to require the return to a depiction of Monticello starting in January 2006, and permanently eliminate the Mint's right to change it again without Congressional approval. The delay and controversy meant the Mint ran out of time to change the reverse of the nickel in 2003.
Upon passage of Cantor's new law, the Mint proposed the Westward Journey nickel series. The series consisted of two new reverse designs for 2004 and two for 2005.
In 2004, the reverse of the nickel changed, with two different designs during the year. The first design, placed into circulation March 1, 2004, featured a design on the reverse based upon a rendition of the original Indian Peace Medal commissioned for Lewis and Clark's expedition. It was designed by Norman E. Nemeth.
In the autumn of 2004, the reverse changed again to feature a view of the keelboat in full sail that transported members of the Corps of Discovery expedition and their supplies through the rivers of the Louisiana Territory. This design depicts Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in full uniform, standing in the bow of the keelboat. This nickel was designed by Al Maletsky.
On September 16, 2004, the US Mint unveiled its new designs for 2005. They had been chosen by John W. Snow on July 22, 2004 but were kept disclosed from the public. In an announcement that surprised many, the U.S. Mint revealed that the Felix Schlag depiction of Thomas Jefferson was being done away with in favor of a more modern depiction of Jefferson. The new obverse of the Jefferson nickel was designed by Joe Fitzgerald and engraved by Don Everhart II.
Also unveiled on September 16, 2004 were two new reverses. A depiction of the American Bison returns to the reverse temporarily, after an absence of 67 years. The new reverse was designed by Jamie N. Franki and engraved by Norman E. Nemeth. The U.S. Mint had been lobbied to include the American Bison on the nickel in the hope of keeping the public interested in its continuing recovery after nearly being hunted to extinction after the completion of the transcontinental railroad.
The final Westward Journey nickel reverse was designed by Joe Fitzgerald and engraved by Donna Weaver. It depicts the Pacific Ocean and the words from William Clark's diary upon reaching it. In a controversial move, the US Mint decided to amend Clark's actual words. He'd originally written, "Ocian in view! O! The Joy!" but as the spelling "ocian" is no longer in use, the US Mint decided to modify it to more modern standards.
It is unclear as of September 2004 whether or not the original 1938 portrait of Jefferson or the cropped profile of the 2005 portrait will be used in 2006 nickels.
|- |align=center| Currency: $1 | $2 | $5 | $10 | $20 | $50 | $100 | Larger denominations |- |align=center| Coinage: Penny | Nickel | Dime | Quarter | Half-dollar | Dollar |}
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