Nickel was a hot item during World War II. When western movie star Johnny Mack Brown’s six-shooters were sent to be nickel-plated, they came back with silver instead. Pretty much the same thing happened to the Jefferson “five-cent coin,” as the government called it.
Armor plate and other military uses had top priority for nickel during the war. By September 1942, five-cent pieces were scarce because of heavy demand and a nickel shortage. As a result, the Federal Reserve temporarily suspended nickel shipments.
Recognizing the need to remove nickel from the five-cent piece, Treasury officials considered several options. One of them was for a five-cent piece composed of copper and manganese. However, the Miami News pre
dicted “slenderized” nickels in the proposed alloy would turn yellow.
Read More : http://www.numismaster.com/ta/numis/Article.jsp?ad=article&ArticleId=18883
Armor plate and other military uses had top priority for nickel during the war. By September 1942, five-cent pieces were scarce because of heavy demand and a nickel shortage. As a result, the Federal Reserve temporarily suspended nickel shipments.
Recognizing the need to remove nickel from the five-cent piece, Treasury officials considered several options. One of them was for a five-cent piece composed of copper and manganese. However, the Miami News pre
dicted “slenderized” nickels in the proposed alloy would turn yellow.
Read More : http://www.numismaster.com/ta/numis/Article.jsp?ad=article&ArticleId=18883
