Pennies, 1793 – 2026

The US Treasury announced on May 22 that the last “penny blanks” have been produced, and after those have been made into pretty, shiny pennies—in early 2026—we will wave goodbye to our little copper friends. I know that each penny costs 3.7 cents to manufacture, but I hate change (as my recent rant about subway tokens proved). With the death of the penny, what will we put in our loafers? What will we pick up from the sidewalk to have good luck all the day? The nickel better watch its back, by the way—each one costs 13.8 cents to produce! (Have you ever noticed that nickels are almost always the oldest-dated coins in your change purse? Why is that?).