Is there a thing as a silver penny ?

[VooDoo710]

Well today I went out to the Lake and figured I would root around with my F44. I was swinging and all off a sudden Beep then again Beep beep beep . So I pinpointed it and started to dig. Dig I didn't points mode said it was about 7 inches down in the sand . I slowly dug and looked and looked and dug. And I saw these 3 Wheat pennies 2x 1943 and 1X 1944. Looking to find out if they ever made a silver penny cause I think I have 3 of them. Let me know what you think . Thank you in advance.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[HAPPYCAMPER]

Think you found some 1943 steel pennies

 

[lairmo]

Steel...

 

[jewelerguy]

in 1943, the government decided to make pennies from steel in order to help conserve copper which was needed for wartime production of ammunition. Steel cents were only produced during that year. Many that are seen today have been re-plated with zinc in order to 'restore' them. Yours look to be completely original. If you dug those, they have not been in the ground for very long because they would be completely rusted

 

[Ogre1190]

Yep, steel. They only did that during WWII.

 

[franklin]

I do not see the one dated 1944? Looks like all three are 1943. Now if one of them was a steel 1944 then it may be worth some change?

 

[decoy218]

Try sticking them against a magnet. If they stick then they are steel. If the 1944 sticks then you have a definite banner. Only about 35-40 struck.

 

[VooDoo710]

in 1943, the government decided to make pennies from steel in order to help conserve copper which was needed for wartime production of ammunition. Steel cents were only produced during that year. Many that are seen today have been re-plated with zinc in order to 'restore' them. Yours look to be completely original. If you dug those, they have not been in the ground for very long because they would be completely rusted

I did dig them they were. Plastic in another plastic bag with. Package of cilica. They where not wet at all they came out just like you see them . Must have been a collection of some sort.

 

[diggummup]

Try sticking them against a magnet. If they stick then they are steel. If the 1944 sticks then you have a definite banner. Only about 35-40 struck.

Don't know how many 1944 steelies were minted at the various mints but there have been 6 that have sold at Heritage auctions since 2010 for 23k to over 60k.

 

[boogeyman]

Sounds like one of the coin companies deals. They'd send you a bunch of (in my opinion) low quality coins. You'd keep what you wanted & send the rest back. It'd be worth checking that area further! Could be someone was as disappointed as I was & threw em out the window!!

 

[Rookster]

I think it's a war penny. I've found a few myself. Super day. Congrats

 

[jewelerguy]

I did dig them they were. Plastic in another plastic bag with. Package of cilica. They where not wet at all they came out just like you see them . Must have been a collection of some sort.

that makes more sense as to why they're not rusted

 

[against the wind]

If you are like me and always scrutinize the coins you find. I suggest that you invest in Yeoman's Red Book of US Coins. History, Numismatics, relics, and knowledge of metal detecting techniques, all go hand in hand in this hobby.
As has been said, in 1943, the U.S. mint made all pennies out of steel. The steel pennies were given a Zinc coating to prevent premature rusting and to make the coin more appealing. Any recoating of these pennies after the penny left the mint, is said to have been done by unscrupulous coin dealers trying to make a fast buck. Although there were some copper, 1943 pennies struck by mistake, very few of these error coins left the mint. A true 1943 copper penny is worth a nice penny today. (No pun intended)
There were some novelty 1943 steel pennies that were copper plated and sold as 1943 Copper penny novelties. In 1944, a few pennies were mistakenly struck on steel planchets. These pennies are error coins and are rare. They were not coated with zinc and would be very easy to spot visually.
If a 1943 steel penny is dropped in soil or sand, they will rust and deteriorate rapidly. That is why not many are recovered unless they have somehow been protected from the elements.
There are also counterfeit or altered coins that people have tried to pass off as 1943 copper pennies. The 1948 copper Lincoln penny was the coin of choice to alter by shaving the 8 and making it look like a 3.
Congrats on your finds.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Looks like a steel cent...very nice find!

 

[thrifty76now]

Amazing finds there. 1943 pennies were made of steel,and they had no copper in them. usually when those are in the ground for a period they just rust into globs. You did well in recovering them.

 

[diggummup]

I once found some recently dropped coins near a slide that included a steelie that wasn't rusted yet. Once.