1864 Var. 2 USA Cent G-VG (G6)

1864 Var. 2 USA 1-cent G-VG (G-6)

The 1864 USA 1-cent was minted during the first year the 1-cent transitioned from being composed of copper-nickel to bronze due to the breakout of the Civil War and the excessive hoarding of coinage by citizens, which, in turn, made merchants and citizens mint and distribute their own tokens as currency. This led to Mint Director James Pollock to write to Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase, proposing a bronze cent and two cent coin, due to the mint running out of nickel and the high demand for the one cent coin from the public, this led up to the Coinage Act of 1864 signed by President Abraham Lincoln on April 22nd, 1864 which authorized the minting of a two-cent coin and the change of composition from copper-nickel to bronze for the 1-cent coin.

Obverse: Liberty with Indian Headdress bearing the word Liberty with the date below  
Reverse: Shield and wreath with lettering centered.  
 
Specifications:  
Composition: Bronze (.950 Copper, .050 Tin and Zinc)  
Engraver: James Barton Longacres  
Weight: 3.11 g  
Diameter: 19 mm  
Edge: Plain  
Die Axis:  ↑↓ 
Mint: United States Mint of Philadelphia  
Mintage: 39 233 714