The purchasing power of a penny has basically disappeared. In 1925, for a penny you could buy a copy of many local newspapers, send a postcard domestically, or munch on a Tootsie Roll. I don't go that far back, but I remember in the 1960s, I could get a single scoop ice cream cone at Thrifty Drugs for 5 cents.
What in the world am I going to do with my penny collection, Jim? :)
I checked out Wikipedia for penny trivia: When first produced around 1793, one cent (which was responsible for the demise of the half-cent around 1857) weighed a whopping 13.48 grams. It now weighs only 2.5 grams.
Kinda reminds me of many shrinking things these days...
Hum… there’s a part of me that thinks I might delight in trying to make exact change with pennies from now on.
Thanks for the quote from Robert Benchley. Some days I feel the same, only without the famous part. ;-)
I like that idea. And what's going to become of "You have any spare change"? Will it be, "Can you lend a guy some bitcoin?"
Bitcoin is next, Jim. Some homeless accept Venmo and other cash-to-cash apps. Here come the Jetsons.
The purchasing power of a penny has basically disappeared. In 1925, for a penny you could buy a copy of many local newspapers, send a postcard domestically, or munch on a Tootsie Roll. I don't go that far back, but I remember in the 1960s, I could get a single scoop ice cream cone at Thrifty Drugs for 5 cents.
Oh yeah. Thrifty ice cream cones were such a deal!
What in the world am I going to do with my penny collection, Jim? :)
I checked out Wikipedia for penny trivia: When first produced around 1793, one cent (which was responsible for the demise of the half-cent around 1857) weighed a whopping 13.48 grams. It now weighs only 2.5 grams.
Kinda reminds me of many shrinking things these days...
Thanks for that bit of history, Deb.
Wow, almost half an ounce of copper. Around 32 cents weighs a pound, that’s amazing. Thanks, Deb.