Flying Eagle Cent

About This Series

The Flying Eagle cent was the US Mint's answer to a problem: the old large copper cent was too big and too expensive to produce, but switching to a small coin required an act of Congress. An 1856 issue of about 1,500 coins was struck as patterns to show lawmakers what the new design would look like - these 1856 coins are now extremely scarce and expensive. The coin officially launched in 1857, with James B. Longacre's eagle on the obverse. Production ran only through 1858; the eagle design caused die damage, and the Indian Head cent replaced it in 1859.