The obverse design for the 2005 nickels will bear, for the first time in 67 years, a new likeness of America's third president, Thomas Jefferson. The "Liberty" inscription on the coin is based upon Jefferson's own handwriting. The design is based on the marble bust of Jefferson by the French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon, completed in 1789. The design was made age-appropriate to his presidency by utilizing later paintings by Gilbert Stuart and Rembrandt Peale. The new obverse image of President Jefferson replaces the image of President Jefferson that had been on the nickel since 1938.
The first of two new reverses on the 2005-dated nickel will feature the American bison, recognizing the American Indians and wildlife encountered by the Lewis and Clark expedition. Expedition journals described the buffalo, and it was an animal of great significance to many American Indian cultures.
Mintage:
| Philadelphia | Denver | Proof |
| 448,320,000 | 487,680,000 | 2,275,000 |