May 16
FIRST NICKEL DAY
The U.S. Treasury Department added another coin to American currency by authorizing the minting of the nickel, a five-cent coin, on this day in 1866. On its face was a shield, while on the
reverse was the number 5.
From 1883 until 1912, the head of Liberty was on the obverse while the Roman numeral 5 was on the reverse side.
In 1913, the U.S. Treasury minted nickels with Indian heads on one side
and buffaloes on the other.
The current nickel is the Jefferson nickel, minted since 1938. The Jefferson nickel has a profile of none other than Thomas Jefferson on the face and a picture of his home, Monticello, on the flip side. Today’s nickel is made of only 25 percent nickel and 75 percent copper. Its official name is the five-cent piece. And that’s the latest from the 440 numismatic department.
Those Were the Days, the Today in History service from 440 International
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