Not many reports on 2015 coins

Find any 2015 dated coins in circulation yet?

A week ago I asked that question in my blog and in the e-newsletter that Numismatic News sent out that day.

I was not exactly overwhelmed with responses.

The first came in a posting on Facebook later that first day from Bryan Clarke who said there were lots of them in California.

I presume the denomination is cents.

Confirming that in a somewhat roundabout way, I had an email yesterday from Charles Jordan.

He wrote, “Just wanted to let you know that I picked up a box of pennies from my bank in North Las Vegas, Nev., today Jan. 26 and the roll that I just opened has 24 2015-D.”

The only other response came from the East Coast on Jan. 20.

From what he says, the writer might be the first reader to actually have noticed a 2015-dated coin.

See what you think.

David King wrote: “Last week I received a 2015-P Jefferson nickel in change in Westminster, Md.”

That could put his timing as early as Jan. 11 or as late as Jan. 17 if we use the conventional definition of week.

Does it matter? Probably not, but it thwarts my desire simply to congratulate the first person who found and then reported a 2015-dated coin to the rest of us.

Overall, the new coinage is either being released not particularly quickly, or fewer readers than ever look at their change.

The latter interpretation might be suspect because the poll question in the Jan. 23 e-newsletter was, “Do you think searching change for error coins is worth the effort?”

Quite a few readers took the time to write thoughtful email responses to me to affirm that it was still worthwhile to look at change.

I have to presume that the number of people looking at their change this year is similar to the number looking last year at this time.

If you still haven’t found any 2015-dated coins, keep looking. There are still first sightings of Roosevelt dimes and America the Beautiful quarters to report.

And I am still interested in whether the new coins have arrived in the Midwest. Unless I receive one at an airport, it will be at least July before the new dates reach Iola, Wis.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper is winner of the 2014 Numismatic Literary Guild Award for Best Blog and is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."