Big Nickel

The Big Nickel is a nine-metre replica of a 1951 Canadian nickel, located at the grounds of the Dynamic Earth science museum in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The twelve-sided nickel is located on a small hill overlooking the intersection of Municipal Road 55 and Big Nickel Drive at the westernmost end of the Gatchell neighbourhood.The Big Nickel celebrated its 45th anniversary on July 22, 2009 with a "birthday party" on the grounds of Dynamic Earth, including a display of coins from Science North's Inco Coin Collection.OriginThe idea for the Big Nickel began in 1963 when Ted Szilva, at the time a 28-year-old City of Sudbury fireman, read in the Sudbury Star of a contest, sponsored by the Sudbury Canada Centennial Committee (Maurice Lacourciere, Chairman), asking Sudbury residents how the City should celebrate the upcoming Canadian Centennial. Szilva put forward the suggestion for a major tourist attraction featuring a giant replica of a five-cent coin, an underground mine and a mining science centre. Szilva’s idea was rejected because the committee felt that "it did not have sufficient use for the citizens of Sudbury as such".By this time, Szilva had independently researched his idea, and had concluded that it could indeed be a viable and worthwhile project. He began to make this dream a reality by scouting out the highest hills in Sudbury to find the best location. On December 11, 1963, he purchased of land from Walter Holdich for $1,000.00 with a $25.00 down payment. The land was ideal because of its unique location between Sudbury and Copper Cliff. To the west, the large, rocky mountain provided a sensational view of the INCO mining and smelting complex, including the nightly slag dump, while to the east one had a beautiful view of the city of Sudbury.