University Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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Sorry, we couldn't find anything matching "The coin we call a "nickel" originated as a silver half-disme (dime) in 1792. The first half-disme coins were ordered struck by President Washington and he provided the bullion for them. They were not put into circulation. The half-dime size continued for seventy-nine years, even though its small size made it very inconvenient. In 1883 the Liberty Head or "V" nickel replaced a shield design. The first nickel five-cent coin was the shield type struck in 1866. It was three-fourths copper and one-fourth nickel. Source: Taxay, Don. New York: Arco Publishing Company, 1966.".