Until now, the legacy of the 1913 Liberty nickels laid buried deep in myth and intrigue. Framed in the backdrop of a nationwide media frenzy and a public mad with the hope of hitting the jackpot, Million Dollar Nickels unveils the story of America's most eccentric and famous collectors, persistent reporters searching for the truth, shameless profiteers, and agents of the Smithsonian desperate to stay above the fray. Years of folklore obscured the facts. Even experts disagreed. How many nickels were minted? When were they made? How did they manage to escape from one of the most secure places in America? Experience firsthand accounts of an outlandish business where dealers pay $10,000 for the privilege to look at a coin, and offer $1 million dollars to buy a nickel thought by some experts to be hidden in the collection of one of the America's richest families.