The two-cent billon was a pattern US coin struck in 1836 and initially proposed as part of the Act of January 13, 1837. Versions exist with either a
reeded edge and
coin orientation
Coin orientation (or coin alignment or variations of these) is the relation of the vertical orientation of the images on the obverse and reverse sides of coins to one another. The two basic relations are called ''medallic orientation'' and ''coi ...
or a plain edge and
medal orientation; however, those with the former tend to be original strikes, whereas the latter are always
proof
Proof most often refers to:
* Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition
* Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength
Proof may also refer to:
Mathematics and formal logic
* Formal proof, a con ...
restrikes (most from the 1850s).
Background
A two-cent piece had been proposed as early as 1806 by Connecticut Senator
Uriah Tracy
Uriah Tracy (February 2, 1755July 19, 1807) was an American lawyer and politician from Connecticut. He served in the US House of Representatives (1793 to 1796) and the US Senate (1796 to 1807). From May to November 1800, Tracy served as Preside ...
, along with a
twenty-cent piece or "double dime". Reflecting the then-prevalent view that coins should contain their value in metal, Tracy's bill provided that the two-cent piece be made of
billon, or debased silver. The proposed metal would have consisted of 6.4 grains of silver and 24.3 grains of copper.
[http://twocentpiece.com/] The Mint Director at the time
Robert Patterson
Robert Patterson (January 12, 1792 – August 7, 1881) was an Irish-born United States major general during the American Civil War, chiefly remembered for inflicting an early defeat on Stonewall Jackson, but crucially failing to stop Confede ...
opposed the bill, as it would be difficult to refine the silver from melted-down pieces. Tracy's legislation failed in the House of Representatives, despite passing in the Senate twice.
Inception
The Mint considered a two-cent piece again for the second time in 1836. Second Engraver
Christian Gobrecht
Christian Gobrecht (December 23, 1785 – July 23, 1844) was the third Chief Engraver of the United States Mint from 1840 until his death in 1844. He was responsible for designing the famous " Seated Liberty" designs, which were in turn the di ...
and Melter and Refiner
Franklin Peale
Benjamin Franklin Peale (born Aldrovand Peale; October 15, 1795 – May 5, 1870) was an employee and officer of the Philadelphia Mint from 1833 to 1854. Although Peale introduced many innovations to the United States Mint, Mint of the United ...
both conducted experiments for the coin, and concluded that the piece was to be made of billon (similar to the 1806 proposal). Although the coin was proposed in early drafts of the Mint Act of 1837, this the proposal was dropped when Peale showed that the coin could be easily counterfeited.
Aftermath
A two cent piece was proposed for a third time during the economic turmoil of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, due to a national coin shortage. For the most part, the lack of coins was filled by
private token issues, some were struck in copper-nickel approximating the size of the cent and others were thinner pieces in bronze.
This fact did not escape government officials, and in 1863, the use of bronze coins was proposed, as they did not seem to contain their face values in metal. In his annual report submitted October 1, 1863, Mint Director
James Pollock noted that "whilst people expect a full value in their gold and silver coins, they merely want the inferior
ase metalmoney for convenience in making exact payments". He observed that the private cent tokens had sometimes contained as little as a fifth of a cent in metal, yet had still circulated. He proposed that the copper-nickel cent be replaced with a bronze piece of the same size. Pollock also wanted to eliminate nickel as a coinage metal; its hard alloys destroyed dies and machinery. On December 8, Pollock wrote to Treasury Secretary
Salmon P. Chase
Salmon Portland Chase (January 13, 1808May 7, 1873) was an American politician and jurist who served as the sixth chief justice of the United States. He also served as the 23rd governor of Ohio, represented Ohio in the United States Senate, a ...
, proposing a bronze cent and two-cent piece, and enclosing
pattern coin
A pattern coin is a coin which has not been approved for release, but produced to evaluate a proposed coin design. They are often off-metal strike (using metals of lower value to test out the dies), to proof standard or piedforts. Many coin col ...
s of the two-cent piece that he had had prepared. According to
numismatist
A numismatist is a specialist in numismatics ("of coins"; from Late Latin ''numismatis'', genitive of ''numisma''). Numismatists include collectors, specialist dealers, and scholars who use coins and other currency in object-based research. Altho ...
Neil Carothers, a two-cent piece was most likely proposed in order to get as much dollar value in small change into circulation in as short a time as possible, as the Mint could strike a two-cent piece as easily as a cent.
The bronze two-cent piece eventually became a regular issue, but with declining mintage numbers each year until it was discontinued officially in 1873.
Varieties
References
{{Coinage (United States)
Currencies introduced in 1836
Coins of the United States
Eagles on coins