In this guide, we reveal some interesting facts about mint issues of coins for circulation. US coin mintages have a rich history of trial and error with the minting of coins. Some denominations were short-lived, while other coin values have continued to the present day. Many designs were short-lived while other designs have lasted for decades.
In this guide is information about the designs, the designers, the alloys used for minting, and the size and weight of current coins.
Mint engravers developed most US coin designs; however, some designs were created by average Americans. Some US Coins have the designer's initials on the coin, while some coins do not have any initials. For example, the Lincoln cent carries the designer's name, Victor D Brennon, under the should of the coin, but it was not always on the coin.
The US Mint decided to honor some Presidents by creating designs with their likeness and adding their portraits to coins. The first coin to be minted with a President was the 1909 Lincoln cent. Since 1909, all US coins either have or did have a President on the coinage. The first famous non-person on a coin was Ben Franklin, who was honored on the half-dollar from 1948 until 1963. Susan B. Anthony was the first famous woman to be honored on a coin in 1979. Since 1979, the only other coin to carry a likeness of a non-President is Sacagawea whose portrait is on the dollar coin.
In the early years of minting, the US Mint frequently made changes to the coin's design. Some of the information for the changes has been well documented, while other changes have a hidden history. The 1913 Buffalo nickel appeared on raised and flat ground, but the raised ground issue was only minted in 1913.
Silver shortages in the US caused the Mint to eliminate the silver content. In 1965, the Mint removed the silver content from coins previously minted with 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper. Current mintages of dime, quarters, and half-dollars contain 8.3 percent nickel and the balance copper.
The motto, "IN GOD WE TRUST," was not always on US coin designs. The US dime did not contain the motto until 1916. Before adding the current motto, the liberty seated coins spelled out "LIBERTY" on the shield design, or in the case of the Indian Cent, LIBERTY was located on the headband. E. Pluribus Unum also appeared on many early dated US coins and, it continues to this day on all US coins.
Over the years, the mint has issued coins in most denominations celebrating the birth of Presidents and historical landmarks. The 1976 Washington quarter and Kennedy half-dollar were redesigned for 1976 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the declaration of independence in 1776. Both coins are dated 1776-1976.