1955

Philadelphia struck 7,888,000 Jefferson nickels in 1955, one of the lowest mintages of the 1950s Philadelphia issues. The low figure reflected the Mint's conservative production allocation during a period when Treasury had adequate nickel supplies in circulation. Collectors and dealers recognized the low mintage and began setting aside rolls of 1955 Philadelphia nickels, similar to the contemporary hoarding of 1950-D and the much earlier 1931-S Buffalo nickel.

The result is a survival pattern with abundant Mint State examples but scarcer circulated pieces. The 1955 Philadelphia is available in all grades at modest premiums, particularly with Full Steps designation. Gem-quality Full Steps examples command meaningful prices but are not prohibitively rare because contemporary hoarding preserved many high-grade pieces.

1955 was the year Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama for refusing to give up her seat on a segregated bus, an event that sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and launched Martin Luther King Jr. into national prominence as a civil rights leader. It was also the year Disneyland opened in California and the polio vaccine was declared safe and effective. The Jefferson nickels struck that year circulated through a country experiencing the beginnings of the civil rights movement and the emerging dominance of television, suburban expansion, and postwar consumer culture.