Pennies are left by visitors to Benjamin Franklin's grave in Philadelphia, just across the street from the U.S. Mint.
The last penny was stamped at the Philadelphia U.S. Mint during an event on Wednesday, Nov. 12, part of an effort to retire the coin that now costs more to produce than it is worth.
The last penny was stamped at the Philadelphia U.S. Mint during an event on Wednesday, Nov. 12, part of an effort to retire the coin that now costs more to produce than it is worth.

PHILADELPHIA — People visiting Benjamin Franklin's grave, just across from the United States Mint, often drop pennies on the marble marking the final resting place of the Founding Father who wrote, "A penny saved is two pence clear."

But soon, visitors may have to pay a little more to pay their respects to Franklin.

The U.S. Mint says it has stopped producing pennies, a historic shift in currency two centuries after the one-cent coin entered circulation.

The last penny was stamped with the aid of Treasurer Brandon Beach at the Philadelphia U.S. Mint during an event on Wednesday, Nov. 12, part of an effort to retire the coin that now costs more to produce than it is worth.

With a series of low thunk! sounds, the last five pennies were struck by Beach, who noted that 1857 was the last time a coin was discontinued in the United States (it was the half-cent coin).

"The American taxpayer has been repeatedly shortchanged" over the last decade, Beach said, as rising production costs mean each 1-cent penny actually costs about 3.69 cents to produce. "The rapid modernization of the American wallet" has also helped render the penny far less useful in a 21st century economy, he added.

"Although today we say goodbye to the copper 1-cent coin, the penny remains legal tender," Beach said. "And we encourage you to use it."

The Treasury Department said the last few pennies were stamped with a special omega mark and will not go into circulation. The government plans to auction the pennies off in the future.

Jimmy Cattanea, a coin operator who's worked at the Mint for two years, said it was "a really crazy thing" to see the penny come to an end, even as he admitted, "We all just kind of swipe a card now and the change sits in a jar."

Seeing the last pennies pressed, he said, "signals a point in American history."

Norman Patterson, the Mint's division head of circulation, said the 5-day-a-week, 24-hour facility is the largest mint in the world, and he called it "mind-boggling" to think how much currency comes from the Philadelphia plant, where 30% of employees are U.S. military veterans.

"The penny was first authorized by the Coinage Act of 1792; however, ongoing increases in production costs and the evolution in consumer habits and technology have made its production financially untenable," according to a statement from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

While the Trump administration has said it is winding down penny production, legislation is still pending that would formalize the plan. A bill dubbed the “Common Cents Act” would round cash transactions to the nearest five cents.

While the penny "will retain its value indefinitely," according to the Treasury Department, the humble one-cent coin will no longer be minted. There are currently an estimated 300 billion pennies in circulation — "far exceeding the amount needed for commerce," Treasury said in a statement.

The U.S. Mint is expected to save $56 million annually by no longer producing pennies.

How many pennies are in circulation?

Even though the U.S. Mint has stopped making pennies, they won’t go away anytime soon. That’s because there are about 250 billion pennies currently in circulation, according to the American Banking Association.

Penny subject of criticism for years

In February, President Donald Trump ordered the Treasury Department to halt production of the coin. “For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump wrote Feb. 9 on Truth Social.

But Trump is not the first person to suggest the U.S. go penniless: In 1989, Jim Kolbe, a U.S. Representative from Arizona, teamed with Jim Hayes of Louisiana to sponsor the Price Rounding Act, which would have required prices to be rounded to the nearest nickel, or 5 cents. The bill failed.

In 2017, Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Mike Enzi of Wyoming proposed a 10-year halt on minting pennies, after which federal officials would weigh whether or not it was worth resuming penny production.

Contributing: Mike Snider and Sudiksha Kochi

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US Mint says it has stamped its last penny, a historic end for a humble coin

Reporting by Phaedra Trethan, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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