Schlag
and his Nickel
03-19-2007 - By Tom LaMarre (Coins Magazine)
It’s
a good thing Theodore Roosevelt wasn’t around when they came up with the
idea of a Jefferson nickel. The Rough Rider hated Jefferson and never would
have approved the coin. But another Roosevelt went along with it and apparently
had some suggestions about the design.
 |
| Felix Oscar Schlag |
“I have never hesitated to
criticize Jefferson,” Teddy Roosevelt wrote. “I think the worship of
Jefferson a discredit to my country.” Roosevelt claimed Jefferson led the
people wrong, and followed them when they went wrong.
Teddy
Roosevelt wrote. “I think the worship of Jefferson a discredit to my
country.”
While admitting Jefferson had plenty of imagination and
sentimental inspiration, Roosevelt felt Jefferson had “neither the courage
nor farsighted common sense when the interests of the nation were at
stake.”
Most people probably disagree with Roosevelt’s
opinion of the third president. Jefferson is widely admired as the author of
the Declaration of Independence. He was a founder of the University of
Virginia, and his collection of books formed the nucleus of the Library of
Congress. He also supported the Lewis and Clark
Expedition.
Jefferson’s portrait appeared on paper money in the
1800s, but a Jefferson coin was not authorized until many years later. George
W. Williams, president of the Baltimore Coin Club in the 1930s, probably
deserves some credit for the idea. In an April 1937 letter to the Mint
director, Williams suggested a series of presidential coins, beginning with one
honoring Thomas Jefferson. It’s doubtful, though, he had the nickel in
mind.
