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| | Coin Community | US 1883-1913 Liberty Head Nickel History |
 | | All were very simple in design, with the Liberty head on the obverse and a Roman numeral I, III or Von the reverse within a wreath, signifying values of one, three and five cents, respectively. |
 | | The Shield nickel, introduced in 1866, was the first base-metal five-cent piece in U.S. history; up to then, the half dime, a small silver coin, had filled the nation's need for that denomination. |
 | | No Liberty nickels were made that year officially, but years later collectors were stunned to learn that five 1913 examples had surfaced, all of them apparently made on the sly by someone at the Philadelphia Mint. |
| www.coincommunity.com /coin_histories/nickel_1883_liberty_head.asp (1173 words) |
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