Nickel coinage in the United States - The history of a common contact allergen
Arizona Coin Collector
You would need to go the web link shown below to
view the images (FIGURE ONE - FOUR). I though
it was ineresting.
Josh Tatum is in the report below.
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FROM:
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1071501
Department of Health And Human Services
National Institutes Of Health
Western Journal Of Medicine
Nickel coinage in the United States - The history of a common contact
allergen
Raymond T Kuwahara,1 Robert B Skinner, III,2 and Robert B Skinner, Jr2
1 Department of Dermatology University of Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK 73104
2 University of Tennessee Department of Medicine Division of Dermatology
Memphis, TN 38163
Correspondence to: Dr Kuwahara r.kuw...@excite.com
INTRODUCTION
Nickel is the most common contact allergen found in
patch testing.1 The diagnosis of nickel allergy is
usually straightforward: the skin becomes scaly and
eczematous after contact with metal suspenders, metal
buttons or clasps (figure 1), medical alert pendants
(figure 2), or ear-rings. Because of the nickel content
in coins, the change in a patient's pockets can cause
an allergic skin reaction. In this article, we discuss
the history of nickel as a 3- and 5-cent piece and as
the base metal used in most of the coins currently
in circulation (figure 3).
EARLY HISTORY
In the early years of the United States, foreign coins
circulated with US coins because of the shortage of
coinage. The Spanish real was legal tender in the
United States until 1857.2,3 The term bits came from
the chopping of a Spanish 8 real (called a "piece of
8" by buccaneers)2 into 4 equal pieces, each worth 2
reales,-2 bits-or 25 cents. Early United States
coinage included unusual denominations, such as the
half penny, 2-cent piece, 20-cent piece, and the
3-dollar gold piece.4
Silver half dime
Contrary to popular belief, the first 5-cent piece
was not termed a "nickel" but rather the "half dime."
The original term for dime was disme from the French
term dixime, which meant one tenth.2,5 The half dime
was discontinued in 1873 because of the increasing
popularity of the nickel 5-cent piece.6
Nickel 3-cent piece
The first "nickel" was a 3-cent piece produced from
1865 to 1889. It was created in 1851 by the US Mint
because the postage for a letter decreased from 5
cents to 3 cents. In 1865, a nickel version of the
3-cent piece was created to introduce a base metal
coin to prevent silver hoarding after the Civil
War.3 The nickel 3 cent was composed of 75% copper
and 25% nickel, thus the nickname "nickel" even
though it had more copper than nickel. The nickname
"copper" was already taken by the 1-cent piece, a
term picked up from the English description of
a penny.
Shield nickel
Our modern version of the nickel did not come into
existence until 1866. After the discovery of gold
in 1849, gold was more plentiful than silver, which
led to an increase in the relative value of silver
and the hoarding of silver coins. During the
resulting coin shortage, stamps were used as
currency.3 The shortage of silver that followed
prompted the US Mint to introduce a base metal
coin, the shield nickel, to eventually replace the
silver half dime. The shield nickel was made until
1883 and was composed of 75% copper and 25% nickel.
Liberty nickel
In 1883, with the silver half dime out of production,
the Mint changed the design of the 5-cent piece.
The first series of coins in 1883 did not have the
word cents on the reverse, only a large Roman numeral
5 or "V". Unscrupulous people gold-plated the new
nickel and passed the coin as a 5-dollar gold piece,
because the 2 coins were about the same size and both
had a similar Liberty engraving on the obverse.4
Around this time, famous con artist Josh Tatum
supposedly would walk into a store and select a
5-cent item, such as a 5-cent cigar, and tender a
24-karat gold-plated nickel. If the storekeeper
noticed it was a nickel, Tatum would simply leave
with his purchase. Most of the time, however, he
would leave with his purchase and $4.95 in change.
When Tatum was eventually apprehended and his case
went to trial, the defense attorney asked each
storekeeper if Tatum, who could neither speak nor
hear, had asked for change back. Every storekeeper
testified "no." Because it was not illegal to
gold-plate coins in the 1880s and Tatum did not
specifically ask for change back, he was found not
guilty. Josh Tatum is often credited with
inspiring the term "I was just joshing." In 1884,
this type of counterfeiting stopped when the Mint
began to engrave the words Five Cents on the
obverse of the nickel.6
The 1913 Liberty nickel was the last of this series
and is one of the most valuable coins in the world.
One such coin was sold at an auction for $1.485
million.7
Buffalo nickel
James E Fraser designed one of the most popular
coins, the buffalo nickel. Similar to the Liberty
nickel, this coin had a composition of nickel and
copper. The popularity of the coin was attributed
to the 2 very American subjects on the obverse and
reverse, the American Indian and the buffalo,
respectively. The image of the American Indian is
a composite of 3 Indian chiefs; the buffalo was
modeled on "Black Diamond," a famous buffalo of
the time in New York's Central Park Zoo.2 The
buffalo nickel was produced during the Great
Depression, and some unemployed men would change
the Indian to a portrait of a friend by carving
into the coin, thus the name "hobo nickels."
COINS IN CURRENT USE
Jefferson nickel
The 5-cent piece we use today was first minted in
1938 and has the image of Thomas Jefferson
engraved on the obverse. This coin marked the
third time the likeness of a past president had
been placed on a coin. From 1938 to 1942, the
Jefferson nickel had the same weight, diameter,
and composition of the buffalo nickel. Because
World War II led to shortages of key metals, such
as nickel (used for stainless steel) and copper
(used for ammunition casings), the Mint changed
the composition of the Jefferson nickel in 1942
to copper, silver, and manganese. These nickels
have a large P, D, or S above the engraving of
Monticello, Jefferson's home, that designates
the city of origin of mintage: Philadelphia,
Denver, or San Francisco, respectively (figure 4).
This composition continued until the end of the
war in 1945. In 1946, the Mint resumed the
traditional composition of nickel and copper.
Dimes, quarters, halves, and dollars
The "shiny-colored" coins-the dime, quarter, and
half dollar-are made of a sandwiched composite
with 2 surfaces made of 75% copper and 25% nickel
over a copper core. The new golden dollar has a
composition of 77% copper, 12% zinc, 7% manganese,
and 4% nickel. The central core of the new coin
is copper. Because the surface of the coin has a
significant amount of nickel, we expect this coin
may be a cause of nickel dermatitis.
CONCLUSION
The dimes, quarters, and half dollars in circulation
today are a clad form of coin with a surface made
of 25% nickel and 75% copper and a core of 100%
copper.4 The 1-cent coin is made of a zinc core with
copper plating. Because of the nickel in the 5-cent
piece and the surface composition of the clad coins,
people with nickel allergy may experience an allergic
reaction after handling nickels, dimes, quarters,
half dollars, and dollars.
Summary points
Nickel is the most common contact allergen found
in patch testing
Nickel coins are a cause of dermatitis
Over the years, United States coinage has included
nickel in many coins made for circulation
Today, the dime, quarter, and half dollar in
circulation are a clad form of coin with a surface
made of 25% nickel and 75% copper and a core of
100% copper
..