1857 Flying Eagle Cent: America's First Small Penny
Quick Overview
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Year: 1857
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Mintage: Approximately 17,450,000 (Philadelphia Mint)
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Composition: 88% copper, 12% nickel
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Designer: James B. Longacre
The Story Behind the Coin
Before 1857, American commerce relied on massive "large cents"—heavy copper coins roughly the size of a modern half dollar that were expensive to produce and increasingly unpopular with the public. To solve this, the U.S. Mint introduced the Flying Eagle Cent, marking the birth of the modern, smaller-sized penny we know today.
The striking obverse design features a soaring eagle modeled after Peter the Bald Eagle, a pet kept at the Philadelphia Mint, while the reverse displays a traditional wreath surrounding the words "ONE CENT".
Despite massive public excitement—leading to long lines outside the Philadelphia Mint in May 1857—the series was short-lived. The hard copper-nickel alloy made the coins difficult to strike properly, frequently causing incomplete details on the eagle's head and tail and rapid die breakage. Because of these production hurdles, the Mint replaced it with the Indian Head Cent just two years later in 1859.
Today, the 1857 Flying Eagle Cent stands as a highly prized, historic bridge between America's old heavy copper coinage and the modern era.
