2. The portrait of Abraham Lincoln on the penny is the only one facing to the right – all other presidential portraits face to the left on circulating U.S. coins.

3. When you flip a coin over after looking at the heads side, the picture on the tails side will be upside down.

4. Four men have been portrayed on U.S. commemorative coins during their lifetime:

Governor T.E. Kilby, on the obverse of the 1921 Alabama Centennial half-dollar.

President Calvin Coolidge, on the obverse of the 1926 Sesquicentennial of American Independence half-dollar – the only living president to appear on a coin.              

Senator Carter Glass, on the obverse of the 1936 Lynchburg , Virginia , Sesquicentennial half-dollar.

Senator Joseph T. Robinson

5. The original U.S. Mint building was the first Federal building erected by the U.S. Government under the Constitution.

Congress passed The Coinage Act on April 2, 1792, creating the Mint and authorizing construction of a Mint building in the nation's capitol, Philadelphia .  Newly appointed Mint Director David Rittenhouse’s first duty was to purchase a piece of land on which to build the Mint.  In July 18, 1792, he purchased two lots for $4,266.67.

7. George Washington did not appear on a United States coin until 1900.

It was a commemorative, however, and did not circulate.  As a result of the plan spearheaded by President Theodore Roosevelt, the 1909 cent became the first circulating coin to bear the likeness of a President: Abraham Lincoln.   George Washington finally appeared on a circulating issue with the 1932 Quarter, a design still in use today.

8. Coin designer initials appear on every circulating U.S. coin.

But they can be hard to find. If you have a dime and a magnifying glass handy, look at FDR’s neckline, just beneath his ear.  You will see the tiny initials "JS".  United States Mint employee John R. Sinnock was chosen to design the Roosevelt dime, as he had already made a medal of the President.  Similar markings can be found by closely examining other metal coinage.  

9. The average lifespan of a coin is 25-30 years.

Coins that are no longer fit for circulation are divided into two groups: mutilated and “uncurrent.”  A mutilated coin is chipped or fused and cannot be counted by machine.  Uncurrents are worn but recognizable, and can be machine-counted.  Both mutilated and uncurrent items are melted down and re-used.

10. The date on a coin isn’t always the year in which it was minted.

By law, all United States metal currency is dated with the year of its issuance or minting.  However, some dates were briefly “frozen,” or changed for other reasons.  When 90% silver coins became scarce in 1964, the mint simply kept using that year’s date on those minted well into 1965 to alleviate the shortage.  Likewise, during the bicentennial celebration, the symbolic date 1776-1976 appeared on many coins minted in 1975 and 1976.