History of the Penny

Have a good look at the penny, what do you see? You probably see nothing but a copper coated circular poor valued cent. Little does everyone know pennies have been around longer than before their grandparents, even their great-grandparents! Matter of fact, it was around so long ago that Abraham Lincoln’s face was not the first design on the penny. I ask that you take the time to consider the American penny’s worth. Without the people’s belief in its value, the penny will be abolished. I see people every day throwing away a penny rather than to put it in their pocket and save it for future uses. Yes a penny is "outdated, almost worthless, bothersome and wasteful" (Safire) piece of junk, but it's has an economic, cultural, and historical significance to the United States of America. The problem is that nobody pays attention to that, and that gives pennies the image of no value. Three good solutions to show the pennies worth include: tolls and vending machines accepting the coin, more charities to keep their penny drives, and historical evidence of what the penny mean to America so that it can be passed on to the future generations.

It has been said that Lincoln was not the first face on the penny, “Benjamin Franklin reportedly designed the first American penny in 1787(Cohen).” Back then the penny was known as “Fugio” and it had an image of a sun and sundial above the message “Mind Your Business.” Also, on the cent appeared a chain with thirteen links, each represents the first colonies established, and on the other side of it was the motto “We Are One”. It was not until 1909 that Teddy Roosevelt introduced the Lincoln cent to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of America’s 16th president birth. Then fifty years later the Lincol...

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... our senseless jingling"(Safire). We have something they do not, and my friend and young educators is the pointless but historical one cent U.S. penny. Three good solutions to show the pennies worth include: tolls and vending machines accepting the coin, more charities to keep their penny drives, and historical evidence of what the penny mean to America so that it can be past on to the future generations.

Works Cited

Safire, William. "Abolish the Penny." The New York Times. The New York Times, 02 June 2004. Web. 09 Nov. 2013.

Cohen, Jennie. "10 Things You Didn’t Know About the Penny." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 30 Mar. 2012. Web. 09 Nov. 2013.

"The Penny's Economic Importance." The Penny's Economic Importance. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

"The United States Mint • Coins & Medals." The United States Mint • Coins & Medals. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.