International > United States of America > United States Dollar > Circulation > 5 Cent > Jefferson in profile (1938 - ?)

Profile of Jefferson nickel (1938–2004)

The Jefferson nickel, designed by Felix Schlag in a Mint-sponsored contest, was minted beginning in 1938. (In 1966 his initials were added to the base of the bust.) The obverse features a profile of Thomas Jefferson, while the reverse features his Virginian estate, Monticello. The steps on the building were slightly modified during 1939, but otherwise the design did not change until 2003. All three mints turned out vast quantities of Jefferson nickels until 1954, when San Francisco halted production for 14 years, resuming only from 1968 to 1970, although it still produces proof coins. Since 1970 all nickels for circulation have been minted at Philadelphia and Denver. Mint marks may be found on the reverse, in the right field between Monticello and the rim, on nickels from 1938 to 1964. From 1965 to 1967, no mint marks were used, and beginning in 1968, the mint mark was moved to the obverse, just below the date, where it remains today. In 1980, the Philadelphia mint began using a "P" mint mark on all nickels. This design is by far the most common currently in circulation.

Wartime nickels

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 U.S. coins to use manganese are the Sacagawea and presidential dollars. These coins are usually a bit darker than regular nickels, said to be due to their manganese content (as was true of many British coins minted from 1920 through 1947). However, carefully-protected proof sets of these coins are difficult to tell from the standard alloy. A more likely reason for the darker appearance of the wartime coin was due to exposure to sulfur during circulation, which invariably gave the coins a mild and somewhat distinctive dark silver tarnish.^{[citation needed]}

The wartime nickel features the largest mint mark ever to grace a United States coin, located above Monticello's dome on the reverse. This mark was a large D or S if appropriate for those mints, but nickels of this series minted in Philadelphia have the unique distinction of being the only U.S. coins minted prior to 1979 to bear a P mint mark. There are eleven coins in the regular series (plus a moderately scarce overdate, the 1943/2-P), and they can be purchased in circulated condition at low cost. When the price of silver rose in the 1960s the "war nickels" quickly disappeared from circulation, a process often aided by their distinctive silver-tarnish appearance, which sometimes appeared in banded form from contact of coins with sulfur-containing elastic bands in pockets.

An unofficial variety of the wartime coin dated 1944 was made in 1954 when counterfeit nickels were produced by Francis LeRoy Henning of Erial, New Jersey. He had previously been arrested for counterfeiting $5 bills. The 1944 nickels were quickly spotted since Henning neglected to add the large mintmark. [2] He also made counterfeit nickels dated 1939, 1946, 1947, and possibly 1953 as well as one other unidentified date [3]. It is estimated that more than 100,000 of Henning's nickels reached circulation. These can still be found in pocket change, and there is a thriving collectors' market for them, although owning a counterfeit is technically illegal. Henning dumped another 200,000 nickels in Copper Creek, New Jersey, of which only 14,000 were recovered. Another 200,000 are thought to have been dumped in the Schuylkill River. When caught, Henning was sentenced to 3 years in jail, and was required to pay a $5,000 fine.

As collectibles

Jefferson nickels are one of the easiest sets of any denomination to collect from circulation. One 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 (1965–1967), as well as matte proofs, exist, and have value above circulating coinage. Specialists look for the number of discernible steps on the façade of Monticello, and those without wear are known as "Full Step" Jefferson Nickels. One of the rarest, or "key dates" of the series is the 1950-D nickel. It has the lowest mintage of all the Jeffersons minted. However, they are not hard to find in higher grades, since it was known by the public from the beginning that the mintage was low, and thus they were hoarded. In uncirculated condition, the 1939-D, 1939-S, and 1942-D are far rarer than the 1950-D and command higher prices than any other coins in the series.