Top 10 Things You Didn't Know About the Penny - TIME (2024)
In response to the copper coin's declining value, some stores have stopped accepting it as a form of payment. In 2007, a New York City man was so incensed when a Chinese restaurant refused to let him pay for his dinner with 10 pennies (along with other cash) that he persuaded a state senator to draft a bill requiring pennies to be accepted everywhere and at all times. (The bill was not passed.) And in 2009, a number of Concord, Mass., shopkeepers banded together to protest pennies on Lincoln's 200th birthday, no less.
While federal law states that coins are legal tender, it does not compel anyone to accept them. If a business doesn't want to take pennies or a $100 bill, for that matter it has a legal right to refuse them. So why does the government keep the penny around? The answer is simple: sales tax. Sales tax raises the price of an item to an uneven amount, requiring pennies to be given in change. Retailers need pennies to return to customers, banks need pennies to give to the retailers, and the Fed needs pennies to give to the bank. All so you can drop one on the sidewalk on your way out.
The mint mark is the small letter that shows which Mint location made the coin. The two most common mint marks are the “P” for Philadelphia and “D” for Denver. The initials of the artist(s) who designed and sculpted the coin are also included in small letters.
A popular coin was the British penny, which our cent is named after. In 1857, Congress told the Mint to make the cent smaller and to mix the copper with nickel. People found the smaller cent easier to use.
In Roman times, the penny term referred to the cost for 100 nails. For example, 100 8d nails cost 8 pennies. #Building #Handyman #HomeService #HomeMaintenance #Carpentry #MrHandyman.
In 1968, proof coin production moved from the Philadelphia Mint to San Francisco and proof coins gained the “S” mint mark. The West Point Bullion Depository made circulating pennies from 1973 to 1986 and circulating quarters in 1976 to 1979. The San Francisco Mint also produced circulating pennies around this time.
According to Gainesville Coins, most circulated 1943 steel pennies trade for around 10 to 25 cents each. Uncirculated examples can be worth $1 to $5, with top-level specimens in Mint State-67 or better sometimes fetching hundreds or even thousands of dollars (Gainesville Coins).
With a mintage of just 396,000 coins, the 1927-S Standing Liberty Quarter is considered one of the rarest and most valuable US quarters in the series, appealing to collectors and investors alike.
Many individuals who are not aware of this coin's high mintage believe the 1969-S cent is a rare coin mainly due to its seemingly unusual “S” mintmark – something most non-collectors would not typically encounter. Expect to pay $2.00 to $3.00 for a run of the mill Brilliant Uncirculated example with full red color.
Coins with mistakes, such as a double die or missing letters, can be worth significantly more than their regular counterparts. Another way is to look for specific years known to be scarce or have low mintage numbers. Collectors also value wheat pennies with a high level of detail and minimal wear.
America's first one-cent piece, called the "large cent," was first struck in 1793, one year after the Mint opened. It was so big that it was hard to use, but it wasn't replaced by a smaller penny until 1857, more than 50 years later.
In the past, pennies were made of 100% copper and even steel, but pennies made in 1982 and later are copper-plated zinc. There also have been pennies containing various metallic mixtures of copper with other metals, such as nickel, tin and zinc. The first penny, minted in 1793, was as big as a half dollar.
Introduction: My name is Terrell Hackett, I am a gleaming, brainy, courageous, helpful, healthy, cooperative, graceful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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