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Million Dollar Lincoln Wheat Cents?

February 2, 2025

Now that I’ve got you’re attention, let talk about Lincoln Wheat Cents in 1943. In the midst of World War II, the United States military is in need of copper and nickel. So, in 1943 the US mint makes Steel Cents. You can imagine the surprise to see this grey penny instead of the reddish brown copper penny.

A lot of people ask me if their steel cents are worth anything. Unfortunately, I have to tell them if they don’t have a high grade mint state coin, don’t expect much. I can understand the logic of many who think that steel cents are only minted in 1943 so it shall be a rarity, but what they don’t realize is that there are over a billion steel cents.

  • Philadelphia mints over 684,628,670 cents.
  • Denver mints over 217,660,000 cents,
  • San Francisco mints over 191,550,000 cents.

Circulating steel cents can range from $0.30 to $1.00. Low end mint state cents can get you a few bucks. An MS-65 steel cent can be between $10 and $20. Sorry folks!

What about the 1943 Copper Cent?

When I was younger, I would see ads on the rare 1943 Copper Cent and they would say that they will offer $1,000,000 because only a few were minted. Somehow, there are a few copper plates that are mixed with the steel ones resulting in a few copper cents. Are they really worth $1,000,000? Again, I have to say no. I googled 1943 Copper Cents years ago and checking a couple of sites, it looks like the value of this penny is somewhere between $60,000 and $85,000. Still, that’s nothing to sneeze at. That’s still more valuable than the 1909-S VDB, 1914-D and 1955 Double Die Cents combined.

Now, check out the 1943 Lincoln Wheat Cent at the top of this article. That cent belongs to me. Before you say WOW to me, I have to tell you this is a counterfeit coin. There are two ways I can figure this out. The obvious one being that I only paid $2 for this at a coin show.

I know it is fake, but I wanted it anyway. If I didn’t think it was counterfeit, I could do a simple test. All I need to do is get a magnet and see if it sticks to the coin. If it sticks, then you have a steel cent. I thought I would try it just for laughs and alas, it’s a steel cent made to look like a copper cent. If it had not, it could be a 1943 Copper Cent, but not 100% sure. Some 1948 cents are altered to look like 1943. Like I always say, make sure you get a coin like this from a reliable dealer.

Are There Any Million Dollar Lincoln Wheat Cents?

To those hoping to find any $1,000,000 Lincoln Wheat Cents, there isn’t one yet. I did look it up to see what is the most paid for a Lincoln Cent. As of writing this, it is a 1943-D bronze cent in 2021 for $840,000.