At what point in time do you think the most different coin designs were in circulation?

ckrakowski

Sorry for the long title. But what time period do you think that the most different coin designs where in circulation at once? What got me thinking about this i was watching a movie about time travel where a guy goes back in time to 1912 and it got me to thinking of the coins that circulated then. I am not counting the state quarters or the presidential dollar coins. when you think about it the Washington quarter is 82 years old. The Lincoln cent is 105 years old. The Jefferson nickel is 76 years old. The Roosevelt is the youngest of the group only being 68 years old.

I think the period when the most different designs was probably 1916. In 1916 you could find the following in circultion.

V Nickel
Buffalo Nickel
Indian Head Cent
Wheat Cent
Barber Dime
Mercury Dime
Barber Quarter
Standing Liberty Quarter
Barber Half Dollar
Walking Liberty Half Dollar
Morgan Dollar.

These coins you might have found in circulation in 1916 followed by date last produced:
Seated Half Dollar 1891
Gold Dollars 1889
Shield Nickel 1883
Seated Dime 1891
Seated Quarter 1891.


what do you think?

Baley

Today

ebaybuyer

I would hypothesize that during the great depression (as any time of hardship) people would spend anything they had, any old coins laying around would have been used for necessities, and not many people could afford to set them aside.

Patches

Possibly colonial times...didnt they use anything and everything from around the world?

ProofArtworkonCircs

You can add the $2 1/2, $5,$10 and $20, 2 each to the list for 1916.

COALPORTER

i guess it would be prior to banning foreign coins and private minted coins....
sometime in the 1850s ?

GrumpyEd

There are a lot today.

Modern times have all of types, the quarters and cents are many design types.
Shield cents, memorials, 2009 cents and all of the recent quarters and they all circulate.

Boosibri

Pre-1857, they just were not all US coins.

ambro51

Not counting the colonial/pre 1857 melange, and the coins of today not counting in all the quarter reverses.....I think the early 1920s had a great diversity of old silver type plus circulating gold. You'd find Indian cents, maybe a CN... Worn shield, decent V and mint dress Buffs (drool), seated, barber and merc dimes. Seated barber and SLQs bust(?) seated barber and WLH. Seated Morgan and peace dollars.....plus all the gold. I suppose commem halves especially the Columbian were seen, as well as low grade bust silver.