Figure 3. The 1792 US coins, one cent copper and five-cent silver piece (half-disme). The half disme has around the obverse rim “Lib Par of Science & Industry.” Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions, Dallas.
The first coins minted were two experiments with silver and copper. First was the 1792 silver half disme (pronounced “deem”);1500 of these were struck in the cellar of a nearby building while the Mint was being constructed. These were 17.5 millimeters (2/3 inch) in diameter and weighed 1.3 grams (Figure 2). That same year, experimental one-cent coins were also struck; these were much larger (28.6 millimeters) and heavier (17 grams) copper pieces. Instead of featuring the faces of old kings, the coins showed the profile of a young woman, her long hair freely flowing, her eyes wide open and looking forward; is that a smile on her lips? (Figure 3A) Around her were written around the rim the first U.S. coin motto: “Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry.” This motto could easily fit around the rim of the large cent piece but had to be abbreviated to “Lib. Par. Of Science & Industry” on the half disme. The reverse of the penny features a laurel wreath, whereas the reverse of the half-disme features a rather pathetic-looking eagle. Maybe this bird accurately captured the economic realities of the new nation? A century later, the eagle on U.S. coins would appear much healthier, reaching its peak of health on the reverse of the “Walking Liberty” half dollar (Figure 1).
The motto “Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry” was fleeting. In 1793, when the first official U.S. coins were struck in the new mint, the motto had disappeared. It was replaced by the simple phrase “Liberty,” the motto that appears on U.S. coins to this day.
Where did the short-lived motto “Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry” come from, and why did it disappear? There are no documents that explain its origins. Because Jefferson supervised Mint operations, he must have chosen, or at least approved of the phrase, on the experimental 1792 coins. It is puzzling that this exact phrase is unknown from his writings or those of any of the other founding fathers. The phrase is identical—except for one word—to an earlier phrase of his. Jefferson in 1789 wrote in a letter to Joseph Willard, President of Harvard, and used this phrase: “Liberty…is the great parent of science and virtue….” One can imagine that some of his colleagues would have pushed back against a platitude linking liberty and virtue, especially for the slaveholder Jefferson. Did Jefferson use this phrase in conversations? One can imagine Hamilton scoffing at the statement, if and when he heard it. Also, by 1792 Jefferson had begun to realize that liberty did not automatically lead to virtuous conduct in public affairs. He must have been alarmed by events in France, where their revolution was becoming increasingly bloody. Or maybe he was convinced by Hamilton’s arguments that the new republic needed a strong industrial base in order to survive, and that “industry” should replace “virtue” in the motto. We do not know. All we know is that the first motto on a U.S. coin was “Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry.”