The Old Wooden Nickel Company Is Worth a Trip to San Antonio

You might have seen the River Walk. Even the Alamo. But have you seen The Old Wooden Nickel Company?

It seems a trip to San Antonio is either all about the Alamo, or the River Walk, but there is another place you should stop in.

Turns out the first Wooden Nickels weren't even coins, they were shingles. During the Great Depression a local bank in Tenino, Washington issued the thin slabs of wood. That was followed by Blaine Washington, who took it a step further and issued coins. In fact, the coins and shingles from these two banks are some of the most sought-after collectibles around.

In 1933 The Chicago's World's Fair issued wooden nickels as souvenirs, and you can still find those around today.

You'll see samples of all of this and more at the Old Wooden Nickel Company museum in San Antonio. You might even be invited into the vault with over half a million wooden nickels. It's definitely a place you shouldn't take any wooden nickels. You might end up in paper jail.