What is "type" collecting? Type collecting is assembling coins of different designs. A type set generally excludes minor variations that include the same basic design. Examples are date change, and mint marks. Major variations in coin composition (such as a switch from 80% silver to copper-nickel) constitute a type change, but a minor variation (such as the ratios of copper, tin, and zinc in 1940s 1-cent coins) do not represent a type change.

Different collectors will have their own opinions of what coins should be included in a type collection. The following is my interpretation of significant year-to-year changes in American circulating coins.

This Web site is not yet complete; I am missing some images of early coins, and some descriptions and images of recent coins.

Half cent	Starting with 1793
One cent	Starting with 1793
Two cent	Starting with 1864
Three cent	Starting with 1851
Five cent	Starting with 1794
Ten cent	Starting with 1796
Twenty cent	Starting with 1875
Twenty-five cent	Starting with 1796
Fifty cent	Starting with 1794
One dollar	Starting with 1794
Two dollar fifty cent	Starting with 1796
Three dollar	Starting with 1854
Five dollar	Starting with 1795
Ten dollar	Starting with 1795
Twenty dollar	Starting with 1849