The History of the US Penny
Recently, on a trip to a big city, I was waiting around for public transportation. I saw an older woman heading down the street, her head bent towards the ground. I noticed her because of the way she was shuffling her feet. As she turned the corner, you could see what she was busy doing was kicking a penny. It was comical to watch this elderly lady, intent on paying the one-cent a piece of her mind. Guess she never heard the coined phrase- find a penny, pick it up, all day long, have good luck. On the other hand, maybe it was on unlucky heads when she first spied the coin. The debate over the penny’s worth has been kicked about for ages.
Reportedly, Benjamin Franklin is responsible for the penny’s design. The multi-talented inventor and statesman was also quoted as saying, “A Penny saved is a penny earned.” These words were powerful incentive behind the penny’s gain to the buying public. We have Ben to thank for all those shiny and tarnished coppers that most every American has a piggy bank or jar full! There are about 150 billion US pennies in circulation.
Indian Head-
From 1859 to 1909, the United States Mint produced the Indian Head one-cent coin. James Longacre was the designer. The coin states
Wheat pennies-
The first
In the history of the US penny, this coin has weathered two world conflicts. During World War II, metals were denied to the Mint for the duration of the war. After much deliberation, zinc-coated steel was chosen as the best in a limited range of suitable materials.
A "1943 S" (San Francisco Mint) copper coin has gone for about $60,000 dollars at auction. The prices from the P (
The easiest way to determine if a 1943, one cent is made of steel, and not copper, is to use a magnet. If it sticks to the magnet, the penny is worth about 50 cents. If it does not stick, the coin might be of copper and should be authenticated by a coin expert.
Before you start breaking into your penny stash- only forty 1943 copper-alloy cents are known to remain in existence. Experts speculate that they were struck by accident when copper-alloy one-cent blanks remained in the press hopper as production began on the new steel pennies.
The
In 2010 The United States began issuing pennies with a new design on the reverse (tails side). This design was created by United States Mint Artistic Infusion Program Associate Designer Lyndall Bass, and sculpted by U.S. Mint Sculptor-Engraver Joseph Menna. It depicts a shield with thirteen vertical stripes and bearing the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. A banner across the front reads ONE CENT.
The style of the shield calls to mind an artistic style that was popular during the Civil War era, when President Lincoln preserved the splintering Union and set the United States back on the path to being healthy and whole again. The design contains symbolism that is important to Americans, including the 13 stripes to represent the 13 original colonies. The stripes support a horizontal bar bearing the motto that means "out of many, one," and which represent the federal government unifying the colonies together.
This reverse design begins appearing on pennies dated 2010, and is expected to remain in place for at least 25 years or until the One Cent coin type is abolished in the United States. Currently, there are no firm plans to do away with the penny. The obverse, or "heads" side, will remain the same as it has been since 1909, bearing the portrait of Abraham Lincoln designed by Victor David Brenner.
I Hope you have found this history of the US penny worthwhile. To add to or begin your valuable penny collection please visit- http://www.buypennies.com
