US Three Cent Coins
There are two general kinds of three-cent U.S. coins. The first are the silver coins known as trimes among numismatists but called “fish scales” by mid-19th-century consumers due to their diminutive size. These were struck between 1851 and 1873. Three-cent nickel coins designed to replace the silver ones were minted between 1865 and 1889.
The introduction of trimes coincided with the lowering of postal rates from five cents to three. The...Continue Reading