How to Identify the Lincoln Wheat Cent

What It Is

The Lincoln Wheat Cent (also called the Wheat Penny) was struck by the U.S. Mint from 1909 to 1958, marking the 100th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth and the first regular-issue U.S. coin to feature an actual historical person. Designer Victor David Brenner created the portrait still used on the cent today, and the sheer volume struck over five decades makes the Wheat Cent one of the most commonly found older coins still turning up in circulation and old collections alike.

Obverse (Front)

The obverse shows a right-facing portrait of Abraham Lincoln, with "IN GOD WE TRUST" arcing above, "LIBERTY" to the left of the portrait, and the date to the right.

Reverse (Back)

The reverse, used from 1909 to 1958, displays two stylized wheat ears (stalks of wheat) curving around the border, with "ONE CENT" and "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" in the center, giving the series its "Wheat Cent" nickname. This was replaced by the Lincoln Memorial reverse starting in 1959.

Size, Weight, Metal, and Edge

The coin measures 19 mm in diameter. Most Wheat Cents (1909-1942 and 1944-1958) weigh 3.11 grams and are struck in 95% copper with a small amount of tin and zinc. The important exception is 1943, when the cent was struck in zinc-coated steel (weighing about 2.7 grams) due to wartime copper shortages, giving these coins a distinct silvery-gray color instead of copper-brown. The edge is plain.

Mint Marks

The mint mark is located on the obverse, just below the date. No letter indicates Philadelphia; "D" is Denver and "S" is San Francisco.

Telling It Apart From Similar Coins

The wheat-ear reverse instantly distinguishes this series from the later Lincoln Memorial cent (1959-2008), which shows the Lincoln Memorial building, and the modern Lincoln Shield cent (2010-present). A genuine 1943 steel cent is attracted to a magnet and is silvery-gray, unlike the scarce and heavily counterfeited "1943 copper" cent, which should not be magnetic; most copper-colored 1943 cents offered for sale are altered-date coins or plated steel cents rather than genuine rarities.

Grading at a Glance

Check the sharpness of Lincoln's coat and hair detail, and the strength of the wheat lines on the reverse. On well-preserved coins, look for original mint luster in the fields; heavily worn coins show a smooth, flattened portrait with little remaining detail.

Authenticity Red Flags

Because certain dates like 1909-S VDB (with the designer's initials on the reverse) and 1914-D are valuable, examine the mint mark for signs of alteration, such as an unnatural font, added texture, or evidence of a mint mark being changed from a common one (like a "D" reshaped from an "S" or vice versa). For 1943 "copper" cents, always test with a magnet; a genuine copper 1943 cent (an extremely rare mint error) would not be magnetic, while a plated steel cent will be, and a coin altered from a common 1948 date (by removing part of the "8" to resemble a "3") often shows tooling marks around the last digit.