1943 Copper Lincoln Cent Controversy Revisited

Researched and written by Rick Saphire

Copyright 2025 Rick Saphire and York Publications

Podcast by The National Podcasting Company

To coin collectors and fortune hunters worldwide, the 1943 Lincoln cent has been a subject of controversy and curiosity. Although the United States Mint denies, to this day, that there were any Lincoln cents struck in copper that year, the search for the elusive 1943 copper Lincoln penny continues. Yet, several of these pennies have been “authenticated” by some of the country’s most respected coin rating agencies. Since the 1950s, these rare coins have sold for as much as USD 1,700,000. An intriguing part of the search for the 1943 copper penny is the story about how these unofficial coins might have come into cir ...