PATHFINDER 1943 STEEL CENT ENVELOPE

Website visitor Marie Garcia writes:

A "Pathfinder war time cent envelope" is a manila paper envelope, often found with a 1943 steel cent, that claims to have obtained the coin from the U.S. Treasury in Washington, D.C. for a customer through the publication Pathfinder Magazine. These envelopes were a piece of numismatic ephemera created to draw attention to the new 1943 steel cents, which replaced copper due to wartime shortages.

• Purpose: The envelopes were likely created to publicize the new 1943 steel cents to readers of Pathfinder Magazine.
• Description: They are typically made of manila paper and feature red ink text claiming the coin was obtained from the U.S. Treasury "several weeks in advance of general circulation". They are sometimes machine-signed "E.H.".
• Historical Context: In 1943, copper was needed for the war effort, so the U.S. Mint used steel to make cents, which were coated with a thin layer of zinc.
• Value: These envelopes are considered a collectible numismatic item, or "ephemera," especially when they contain a 1943 steel cent. While the 1943 steel cents themselves are not rare, the combination with the specific Pathfinder envelope makes the set more interesting to collectors.

 

To read the complete articles, see:
A First-Release 1943 Steel Cent (https://stacksbowers.com/this-that-06192014/)
A FIRST-RELEASE 1943 STEEL CENT ENVELOPE (https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v18n45a13.html)

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web