subject: Coin Collection - Seeking Out Small Cents [print this page] Coin Collection - Seeking Out Small Cents
A strange thing happened in 1857. After over 60 years of making the clunky large cents, U.S. Mint officials discovered that the general public was perfectly willing to accept a smaller coin as 1. We know that by 1857, the public accepted the change (pun intended) willingly and enthusiastically.
The first small cents were a mixture of copper and nickel that had a light color, earning them the nickname white cents. In 1864, the weight of the cent was reduced and the nickel removed, a new standard that lasted for nearly 120 years. Beginning in 1982, cents were made of copper-plated zinc, as they still are today.
We must mention the cents of 1943. The United States needed copper for World War II, so in 1943 the government used zinc-plated steel as a substitute. The 1943 steelies have a white color that is completely unlike any copper cent. Even today, coin dealers receive frequent phone calls asking about these unusual coins, usually from collectors who think they've discovered a great treasure.
Also known incorrectly as pennies (which are English coins), small cents are often a collector's first experience with coin collecting. In low grades, they're so affordable that even a child can put together a nice collection on a tiny budget.
In a sense, colonial coins are the U.S. version of ancient coins. Some colonial coins, like the Massachusetts silver coins, predate the first official U.S. coins by more than a hundred years. Colonial coins are classic Americana and should be viewed as very special, regardless of whether you decide to collect them or not.
