Wooden Nickels
The saying "Don’t Take Any Wooden Nickels" did not apply
in Gainesville during a few weeks in its centennial year
of 1950.
Many activities were held in honor of Gainesville’s Centennial—the
Progressorama, a costume ball, window display contest, and more. To
help celebrate the centennial, wooden nickels were distributed in town
beginning on Friday, August 25, 1950. The nickels were valid as legal
tender for any purchases made in area stores until Wednesday, September 6.
The Gainesville Daily Register reported,
The wooden nickels were distributed to merchants who were
asked to invest $5 each in them and use them for change in
accepting money for purchases. A wooden nickel would
buy five cents worth of merchandise in Gainesville stores
during the Centennial celebration. People could redeem
the wooden nickels at face value at either the Gainesville
National Bank or First State Bank on September 5.
The wooden nickels were printed on "actual wood of the thickness
of berry boxes." There were two reasons why the nickels were produced.
According to the newspaper, "first, each time one of those wooden nickels
was put into circulation, it was a reminder to both purchaser and the
seller that Gainesville was having a centennial celebration. Second, it
was thought that people would want souvenirs of the centennial
celebration and that the nickels would be perfect for that." The account
was correct. People did hang on to the nickels as souvenirs and today,
they are museum pieces.
Morton Museum of Cooke County