I thought the creation of Lincoln cents in steel during the war to conserve copper wasn't entirely a
Longacre
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I thought I read somewhere that it was a myth that the steel Lincoln cents were minted in order to conserve copper that was needed during the war effort in WWII. I can't remember where I read that, but it keeps sticking in my mind every time I hear someone mention this. Does anyone have any thoughts as to whether this is true, or just a propaganda thing to increase patriotism during the war?
Always took candy from strangers
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
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no myth there as it was natural resource concerns that even found gas rationing coupons in that day too
ww2 was important not to lose
Maybe you're thinking about the brass cents being made from recycled shell cases.
"Lange suggests that the use of the shell casings had more use as propaganda and morale boosting than any practical purpose."
coinworld about brass cents
<< <i>I thought I read somewhere that it was a myth that the steel Lincoln cents were minted in order to conserve copper that was needed during the war effort in WWII. I can't remember where I read that, but it keeps sticking in my mind every time I hear someone mention this. Does anyone have any thoughts as to whether this is true, or just a propaganda thing to increase patriotism during the war? >>
I also remember reading the same thing recently (within the last 2 years). Now days, when someone states that there was a copper shortage during the war which caused production of steel cents, I feel as if they are misinformed.
In 1942 the mints eliminated most tin from the cent alloy leaving only a trace to satisfy the law. By mid-1942 the War Production Board, Copper Branch, had told the mint it couldn’t have enough copper for cents. The mint also “volunteered” to give up the copper – so it was not simply an order, but more of a cooperative agreement.
With zinc coated steel cents in circulation by mid-1943, complaints came from everywhere – including the White House. The President complained of trying to use a “silver” cent in a pay phone instead of a dime, being arrested and let off with a stern warning by a lenient judge.
The army initially suggested using 70-30 (copper-zinc) alloy shell cases for coinage because they were running out of places to store the shells produced at various practice ranges. (70-30 brass becomes brittle on melting and rolling and is not usable for new shell cases.) The mint agreed to try shell cases, and after some experiments and negotiating, was able to get enough virgin copper to mix with melted shell cases to make 95-5 alloy suitable for coinage. They sometimes, but not always, added a trace of tin by tossing in a few obsolete or damaged cents of earlier date.
The shell cases came from .50cal and other weapons used in domestic training. Soldiers and sailors did not save shell cases from overseas.
Here’s a thread with some additional information -- Shell case calibre
[Not sure where the “story” about the steel cents (and/or silver-alloy nickels) being produced for some other reason that a shortage of copper originated, or not using shell cases for coinage metal came from. Both are true and extremely well documented (hundreds of boring, bureaucratic pages in multiple archive files).]
(There will be a lot of new research information in the book I'm working on about the Great Depression through WW-II.)
<< <i>With zinc coated steel cents in circulation by mid-1943, complaints came from everywhere – including the White House. The President complained of trying to use a “silver” cent in a pay phone instead of a dime, being arrested and let off with a stern warning by a lenient judge. >>
I'm struggling with this. Yes, the "dirty pennies" were scorned but the bit about FDR being arrested and judged for using a '43 cent instead of a dime in a pay phone? Really?
Sir Longacre, I think your recollection is not failing you. Or let's say that the actual benefit of steel/zinc over copper was overstated, intentionally or otherwise. At one point the mint planned to use steel for a few years. No one knew how long the war would last. But the unpopular program was killed pretty quickly.
The gov't, however, wanted to keep the patriotism propaganda alive -- it was quite an effective machine -- and made a lot of noise about how it could restore the copper cent early through concerted recycling of shell cases from military training areas. (That's what I read, anyway, and can give you references if it matters.)
As for the other parts, I think you are making too many assumptions. The government made no significant announcements about restoring copper cents until a few weeks before production began. The War Production Board allocated metals for military and civilian uses, and copper was largely dedicated to military demand. The mint did get virgin copper – enough for domestic coinage alloy, and some for production of coins for foreign countries. (Most of this was on loan to the other country.) It took quite a bit of arm twisting to get the WPB to release enough copper for 95-5 cents and the mint was prepared to make-do with 90-10. Anything less presented M&R equipment problems. The shell cases were collected by the Army and shipped in box cars and closed gondolas to the mints, where they sat on sidings until the mints could melt the stuff. Shipments were commonly in the range of 100,000 to 150,000 lbs. western mints got most of their shell cases from Tonopa, NV and the Philadelphia Mint got theirs from NJ training bases.
<< <i>The FDR comments are a joke that FDR used with Treasury Secretary Morgenthau to make the point that even the President didn’t like the silvery-cents. >>
Ah, a joke. Okay. It didn't read that way to me.
You are certainly an expert on this and I defer to your knowledge and research, RWB. It was quite an interesting time for the country and its coinage.
There was some skepticism about the shift away from bronze. The Treasury announced it was abandoning the zinc/steel cent in mid Dec '43 even though the original Public Law called for a material change through 1946. Two weeks after the announcement the Washington Post published an editorial deriding the quality of the '43 cent and implied that the composition change was never really necessary.
Perhaps it was just another case of the media stirring the pot. "Hey, we need all this copper and tin for the war effort! But wait, the hard zinc/steel planchets are killing the mint and everyone hates the coins. Surprise, we just figured out how to make more brass. Never mind..."
As I said, RWB, you have done a lot of research and surely know the facts better. The Press loves to get us worked up. Anyone want to talk about global warming?
“In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." - Thomas Jefferson
My digital cameo album 1950-64 Cameos - take a look!
Yikes!
“In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." - Thomas Jefferson
My digital cameo album 1950-64 Cameos - take a look!
<< <i>I seem to remember watching a documentary on the History Channel about the Manhattan project within the last year. They needed huge amounts of copper to produce the enriched uranium for the bombs. As I also recall, they consumed alot of silver in addition to the copper. I don't remember if any tonnages were mentioned, but we all know that the gov't will ration strategic materials in times of war. And it would make sense that this would have been kept quiet for a number of years after the war. >>
Bingo!
As you noticed, most of the early war-time legislation had cut-off dates in 1946, or at the end of the emergency. The laws also permitted changes but did not require them. But the administration wanted to get back to normal - or at least create the impression of "normal" - as quickly as possible.
Untangling the confusion on emergency alloys and tests is proving to be a huge task, and will take a long time to figure out.