Q.David Bowers
The hard nickel alloy resulted in rapid die wear. To extend the life of dies, some were softened and then repunched with the hub, thereby sharpening the impression. The result is that numerous recuttings occur on the letters and other features of many issues. Recut dates are likewise common. One sharp overdate, the 1883/2, exists in the series. Another coin, an 1869 with a recut date, has been styled as "1869/8" by some authorities, although the undertype is not sharp enough to permit unequivocal identification.
In 1881 Col. A. Loudon Snowden, director of the Philadelphia Mint, encouraged engraver Charles E. Barber to prepare a new series of pattern designs so that the one-cent, three-cent, and five-cent pieces would be of uniform style. The resulting coins, issued in pattern form only, featured the head of Miss Liberty on the obverse, modeled, some said, after the classical goddess Diana. The reverse showed a wreath of cotton and corn enclosing respectively the Roman numerals I, III, and V.
In 1882 additional patterns of the five-cent denomination were minted. Most featured Barber's head of Liberty and differed from each other in the placement of stars and descriptions. One interesting variation had five equally-spaced raised ridges on the edge so that blind persons could determine the denomination of the coin by its touch. The idea was never officially adopted.
In 1883 the new Liberty head design by Barber was adopted for circulation. In its final form the style consisted of the head of Liberty on the obverse surrounded by 13 stars and with the date 1883 below. The reverse depicted the Roman numeral V within a wreath and in-scriptions surrounding. There was a slight problem: the word CENTS appeared nowhere on the coin. The only indication of value was the Roman numeral V.
The subject of a design change for the nickel five cent piece was brought up on May 4, 1911, by Eames MacVeigh, who wrote to his father, Franklin MacVeigh, secretary of the Treasury:
A little matter that seems to have been overlooked by all of you is the opportunity to beautify the design of the nickel or five-cent piece during your administration, and it seems to me that it would be a permanent souvenir of the most attractive sort. As possibly you are aware, it is the only coin the design of which you can change during your administration, as I believe there is a law to the effect that the designs must not be changed oftener than every 25 years ...
James Earle Fraser, a noted sculptor, learned that the Mint was considering new designs and began corresponding with the institution in 1911. Receiving en-couragement, he proposed an Indian head and a buffalo as being truly American in design. "The idea of the Indian and the buffalo on the same coin is, without doubt, purely American and seems to be singularly appropriate to have on one of our national coins," he wrote on September 19, 1911.
Work continued through 1912. There were a number of suggestions about revisions, particularly from one Mr. Hobbs, who was in the coin machine manufacturing business and who claimed that the Indian buffalo nickel would not work properly in such devices.
In 1913 the buffalo nickel, as it is now known, made its appearance. Part way through the year the reverse design was modified slightly to depict the buffalo on flat rather than raised ground. Striking of the buffalo style continued through 1938 and was accomplished at the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints.
The design, in unusually high relief, presented many problems with striking. Today a generous portion of the specimens extant, particularly those emitted from the Denver and San Francisco mints, are very weakly struck on the higher portions. One of the most famous buffalo nickels is the 1918/7-D overdate. First identified years after it was struck, the piece is rare in all grades, particularly in mint condition. 1926-D is remarkable for weak striking. Nearly all Denver Mint issues this year were struck very poorly. In 1937 a die being used at the Denver Mint became clogged, with the result that the buffaloes on the nickels produced had three legs instead of the zoologically correct four. The variety became famous.
Perhaps the most unusual issue among buffalo nickels is the curious 1938-D over S, a coin which shows an S mintmark clearly under the D. First discovered in 1962, it was the first "overmintmark" identified in the United States series. Here was a coin with a connection to two widely separated mints. It was produced as the result of an unused San Francisco reverse die being overpunched with a D mintmark at Philadelphia, the mother mint, where dies for branch mints are prepared. Interestingly enough, within the next decade a number of other overmintmarks came to light in scattered 20th century series.
In 1938, the 25th year of the buffalo nickel, it was decided to replace it with a new design. A public competition was announced with a prize of $1,000 to be awarded to the winner. Eventually 390 plaster models were submitted. Felix Schlag, a German immigrant who settled in Chicago nine years earlier, was announced as the winner on April 24th. After modifications the design, featuring Thomas Jefferson. on the obverse and his home, Monticello, on the reverse, was adopted for circulation. Mintage commenced in 1938 and has continued since that time. Certain nickel varieties from 1942 to 1945 were struck in a special alloy composed of 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% Manganese, to omit nickel which was in strong demand for war purposes. Several interesting varieties occur in the series, including an issue of 1939 with the inscriptions MONTICELLO and FIVE CENTS doubled, and several overmintmarks, the 1949-D over S, 1954-S over D, and 1955-D over S.
United States Half Dimes (1792-1873)
The first coin in this series, the 1792 half disme (later the "s" was dropped), was most certainly made as a circulating issue. Harold P. Newlin, in his limited edition monograph (just 100 copies were printed) A Classification of the Early Half Dimes of the United States, published in 1883, singled out two favorite issues for detailed treatment. The first was the 1792 half disme, and the second was the 1802 half dime. Concerning the 1792 issue Newlin wrote:
It is, I believe, generally conceded by numismatists, that the first regular coinage of the United States Mint was in 1793-consisting of the copper cent and half cent.
This belief would seem to exclude the 1792 half dime, known as the Martha Washington half disme, from the reg-ular series, and for the reason that it is considered a pattern piece, not intended for general circulation and struck before the regular series commenced. Without desiring to place myself in direct opposition to this accepted opinion, I would simply say that having studied the history of the half dime with some degree of care, I can find in it nothing to indicate that it was intended simply for a trial piece.
Washington, in his annual address, November 6, 1792, having said, inter alia, "there has been a small beginning in the coinage of half dimes, the want of small coins in circulation calling the first attention to them," and it would certainly seem reasonable to accept the words of this gentleman, whose general reputation for veracity is, I believe, conceded to be good, and consider the 1792 half dime the "small beginning" in the said series. Mr. Snowden, in his book [Description of the Coins in the Cabinet of the United States Mint] expresses his opinion thus: "We consider that the piece was intended for general circulation."