If I could have a beer with anyone—alive or dead—it would be Benjamin Franklin. French economist and statesman Anne Robert Jacques Turgot summed up Franklin best when he said, “He seized the lightning from Heaven and the scepter from the Tyrants.” Indeed!
As it turns out, when Franklin wasn’t saving countless buildings from lightning strikes or helping to secure American freedom, Franklin also designed money. I recently had a reader reach out to ask me about this curious copper coin in her possession.
It is a Fugio cent, also known as a Franklin cent. It has the honor of being the first official circulation coin of the United States. This particular penny, designed by Benjamin Franklin, was minted for one year in 1787, with only 398,577 being produced.
What is the Fugio cent?
The Congress of the Confederation of the United States authorized a design for an official copper penny on April 21, 1787. The coin was eventually referred to as the Fugio cent because of its image of the Sun and its light shining down on a sundial with the caption, “Fugio.” It is Latin for I flee or I fly, meaning time flying by.
At the coin’s bottom, Franklin added the phrase, “mind your business.” To modern ears, that may sound like a rude insult, but Franklin, being an influential and successful businessman, likely meant the word “business” literally, as in pay attention to your business affairs.
The coin’s reverse has the motto, “We Are One,” surrounded by thirteen chain links representing the original thirteen states. Here’s a fun side note. Following the 1788 ratification of the Constitution, U.S. coins transitioned to the motto E pluribus unum, Latin for “out of many, one,” found on the Great Seal of the United States. Interestingly enough, words spoken by Onondaga nation chief Canassatego during the Great Indian Treaty of 1744 in Lancaster, PA, helped to inspire the design of the Great Seal. You can read that story here.
The Fugio cent’s design borrows heavily from another one of Franklin’s coin designs—the 1776 “Continental dollar” coin (shown below), which was produced in pattern pieces but was never circulated.
A penny saved is $3,500 earned.
It should be no surprise that such a rare coin designed by founding father Benjamin Franklin wouldn’t also be worth considerably more than its face value. In January 2022, a circulated version of the coin sold for $1,575, while an uncirculated Fugio cent sold for $3,500 on eBay.
Read more Benjamin Franklin-related stories
The busybody: Benjamin Franklin’s greatest “invention”?
Is the busybody Benjamin Franklin’s greatest invention? Perhaps not, but the story behind it is legendary. Click here to read more.
Benjamin Franklin brings the printing press to Lancaster City
Did you know that in 1751, Benjamin Franklin founded the first print shop in Lancaster? Located on King Street, he called it the New Printing Office. The following year, in 1752, Heinrich Miller and Samuel Holland published Lancaster’s first newspaper, The Lancaster Gazette, at this location. Articles were written in both English and German. Click the link to learn more.
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I don’t have that coin but I have a 1787 Massachusetts coin eagle on one side Indian on other 859 912 1287
Where could one sell this coin at? I have one I thought it was funny mind your own business that’s what’s wrong with the world now . I thought well back then people didn’t mind their own is why he made the coin to say that.
Is it authentic?
if not Ben Franklin, then who? Lots of characteristics of the finished design, certainly reflected on Ben Franklin and his legacy, and the history he left. None of it seems to reflect on anyone else. Perhaps that is why so historian say this was a design that originated with him? Perhaps it was refined further by someone who designed the coin, but I guess none of us will ever know the truth of it or, at least, the full truth of it. As for me, I rather like the idea that Ben Franklin created most of this coin. Why should not the history of that moment, be related to the history of someone who made the moment possible? As I said, if not been Franklin, then who?
Is stowe part of the stowe famous family of 1776
How much is a 10¢ coin worth
And how much is a wheat dime worth
And a1966 quarter
Aimee, google your coins or go to a coin shop, key to a valuable coin is date, mintage and most importantly is the condition of the coin. A 1966 Washington Quarter in circulated condition is worth around $1.00, the 1966 quater also has an error on the reverse side called a double die, that’s where the coin is double struck and there’s doubling in some letters, also a 1966 uncirculated one could be worth as much as $5,000 plus…it’s all about coin condition.
There’s NO PROOF that Benjamin Franklin designed the Fugio cent! There’s NOTHING in the Mint’s records, or minutes mentioning Franklin in ANY of the discussions on the minting of the coins!
The Mint wasn’t established until years after this coin. There would be no record for the Mint. Why would they?