The Jefferson nickel started being minted in 1938. All except the war nickels" were made of copper and nickel. In October of 1942 to 1945, nickel was removed from the coin and was used for the war effort. On October 8, 1942, the wartime five-cent piece composed of copper (56%), silver (35%), and manganese (9%) was introduced to eliminate the critical war material. A larger mint mark was placed about the dome. Letter P (Philadelphia) was used for the first time, indicating the change of alloy. The pictures to the left show the pre-war nickel on the top and the war-time nickel on the bottom with the larger P mint mark on the reverse.
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