Collecting Westward Journey Nickels

by Don Mesler (scripophile)

Historical Background

The Louisiana Purchase, the acqusition from France of the land west of the Mississippi River ranging from New Orleans to the Canadian border, occurred in 1803.  It was predominately the inspiration of President Thomas Jefferson and it acquired for the young United States 1,600 acres of virgin territory for a price of $17 million, approximately $0.04 per acre.

In 1803 Jefferson appointed Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to head an expedition to explore the newly acquired territory.  This exploration was successfully concluded in 1805.

Coin Legislation

The approach of the anniversary of the Louisiana Land Purchase and the Lewis and Clark Expedition led to the Introduction of f the American 5-Cent Coin Design Continuity of 2003.  This act provided for issuance during the years 2003-2005 of a new design for the 5-cent coin ("nickel") with a reversion to a design in 2006 similar to the coin that existed from 1938 to 2002.  The coins were to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase and the expedition of Lewis and Clark.

Resulting Coinage

The nickel in existence at the the time of the enactment of the new legislation was the Jefferson nickel which had been minted since 1938.  The obverse featured a profile of Thomas Jefferson, and the obverse featured Jefferson's Virginia estate, Monticello.  Both the obverse and reverse were designed by Felix Schlag.

Looking back, the outcome of the new legislation was 5 distinct new nickel issues.  In 2004, two new nickels were issued, the Peace Medal Design and the Keelboat Design.  In 2005, two more new nickels were issued, the Bison Design and the Ocean In View Design.  In 2006, one more nickel was introduced, the Return to Monticello Design.  This design is intended to be fixed far into the future--the annual dating being the only thing that will be changed.

Westward Journey Nickel Series Issues

2004 Designs

There were two different designs issued in 2004, the Peace Medal Design, introduced at the start of the year, and the Keelboat Design introduced mid-year..

Peace Medal Design

The obverse of this design was the Schlag profile portrait of President Thomas Jefferson used on the nickel since 1938.

The reverse of this design was based on the original Peace Medal commissioned for the actual Lewis and Clark expedition.

Keelboat Design

The second offering of 2004 was the Keelboat Design.  The obverse of this nickel was a continuation of the Schlag portrait used since 1938. 

The reverse is an image of the 55-foot boat that was used by Lewis and Clark to navigate the Louisiana Territory's rivers.

2005 Designs

There were two different designs issued in 2005, the American Bison Design, introduced at the start of the year, and the Ocean In View Design introduced mid-year.

American Bison Design

The obverse of the 2005 nickel marked a change in the portrait of Thomas Jefferson.  It is not a profile but a partial frontal view, the first change in the obverse of the nickel since 1938.

The reverse of the first nickel issued during 2005 contains an image of the American Bison, the most widespread animal encounter by Lewis and Clark and the animal most depended upon by the native American Indians.

Ocean in View Design

The obverse is a continuation of the portrait used earlier in the year for the American Bison Design.  This would be the last time that this portrait would be used, however.

The image on the reverse of this nickel shows the Pacific Ocean as it might have appeared to Lewis and Clark when the westward track was finished.  It contains the words "Ocean In View! O! The Joy!", an entry made by Clark in his journal on November 7, 1805.

2006 (and beyond) Design

The last and final design of the Westward Journey Series began minting in 2006 and will be continued indefinitely.

Return to Monticello Design

The obverse of 2006 nickel is a new portrait, almost completely frontal in nature, of President Thomas Jefferson. 

The reverse of the 2006 nickel features the classic rendition of Monticello, President Thomas Jefferson's Virginia home.  This image is the one executed by Felix Schlag and chosen as the nickel's reverse design from 1938-2003.  The current image is more detailed, however.

At the time of the introduction of the 2006 nickel, the Jefferson profile that appears on the American Bison and Ocean in View designs will have been is use for just one year.  The 2005 obverse will a one-year design type.  For United States coinage this is an extremely rare event. 

Collectors and investors will want to keep an eye on the Bison and Ocean in View nickels for possible price appreciation.  Although the mintage was large, they probably will be scarce in circulation, and there is potential the the general population will gobble them up.  (For those who don't think that appreciation is possible, check the current retail price of a roll of 2004-P Peace Metal nickels (approximately 12 times face value)).

Coin Purchases and Sales

The Peace Medal, Keelboat, Bison, and Ocean in View nickels were all available from the U.S. Mint in rolls and bags during the period that the coins were being minted.  At the same time, these nickels were being shipped to the the mint's distributors and the Federal Reserve Banks.  The U.S. Mint was able to sell and distribute each of these coins only during the 6-month period when the minting was legitimate.

By now, the 2004, 2005, and 2006 issues have been distributed by the Federal Reserve Banks to its member banks, and they in turn have distributed the coins to their customers or into general circulation.  Besides extracting them from circulation, interested individuals must obtain these coins from dealers or other collectors.

They can be purchased in bags, rolls, and small complete sets of coins.  An active market on eBay also exists.  An active market in individual coins does not exist at this time.  The nickels are too inexpensive to generate meaningful profits when sold coin by coin.

The distribution process which occurred with the 2004, 2005, and 2006 coins is now being repeated for the 2007 nickels,  Thes coins are currently available for purchase from the U.S. Mint in rolls and bags.  The U.S. Mint is shipping to the Federal Reserve Banks and its other distributors.  Dealers, collectors, investors, and spectators were acquiring the coins from these sources as eary as January 2007.  The wholesale and retail markets will mature in these coins as 2007 progresses.

In subsequent years, 2008 and beyond, the process just described for the earlier coins will repeat itself, hopefully without a hitch. 

Westward Journey 5-cent Coin Mintages  (Source: Coin World, January 30, 2006)

 2004 Production

 Design             Philadelphia       Denver               Total
 Peace Medal    361,440,000     372,000,000      773,440,000 
 Keelboat          366,720,000     344,880,000      711,600,000
 Total                 728,160,000    716,888,000     1,445,040,000 

 2005 Production

 Design             Philadelphia         Denver              Total    
 Bison               448,320,000       487,680,000     936,000,000
 Ocean in View 411,120,000       394,080,000     805,200,000
 Total                859,440,000       881,760,000    1,741,200,000

Albums

Albums for the Westward Journey Nickels are available.  Two particularly attractive entries are described below:

1.  The Westward Journey Nickels album produced by The H.E. Harris Co. (Whitman Publishing).  It has holes for 2004, 2005, and 2006 nickels, both P and D mints.

2.  The Westward Series Nickels Collector's Map, also produced by Whitman Publishing.

This is a special tribute to the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark Expedition.  The folder is both a map and an album.  The map portion shows the territory covered by the Louisiana Purchase and shows the route of the Lewis and Clark expedition.  The album portion has holes for an assortment of coins (20 total) including the Westward Journey Nickels, State Quarters, Sacagawea Dollars, and an Indian Head Nickel.

Now that the historical record is known and the mint statistics are finalized, more albums by other publishers are likely to be announced.

History of the Five Cent Piece

Prior to the Westward Journey Nickel Series, for major types of nickels had appeared.  They are as as follows:

  Shield Type  1866-1883
  Liberty Head Type  1883-1912
  Indian Head (Buffalo) Type  1913-1938
  Jefferson Type  1938-2003

The Shield Type was America's first five cent piece.  It appeared after enabling legislation (Act of May 16, 1866).  The designer was James B. Longacre.  A couple of major varieties exist.

The Liberty Head Type replaced the Shield nickel in 1883.  The designer was Charles E. Barber.  A couple a major varieties exist.

The next 5 cent coin to appear goes by many names:  the Buffalo nickel, The Bison nickel, or the Indian Head nickel.  The designer was James E. Fraser.  Two major varieties of the coin also exist.

The Jefferson nickel was the fourth to appear in the parade of U.S. five cent pieces.  The designer was Felix Schlag.  The design marks a major turning point in images appearing on U.S. coins for those of a symbolic or allegorical nature to portraits of real life individuals and images of actual places. A couple of major types of the Jefferson Nickel also exist.

The Jefferson Nickel has been one of the nations most popular coins. It was minted from 1938 to 2003, a span of 65 years.  And it does not quite end there.  The Return to Monticello design of the Westward Journey Series has many resemblances to the predecessor--a portrait of Jefferson (completely new) for the obverse and a slightly reworked image of Schlag's redition of Monticello for the reverse.

Conclusion

The Westward Journey Nickel Series in an attractive, interesting, commendable, and appropriate commemorative issue.  It is popular with observers, commentators, and collectors as well. Already some of the issues show unexpected scarcity.  An analysis of mintage statistics indicates that this will continue.