World War 2: The 1943 Zinc-Coated Steel Cent

©2000 The American Numismatic Society. Images are not to scale. Photography by Sharon Suchma, ANS Photography Department.

1944.3.1: Philadelphia 1 Cent. Obverse: Lincoln bust right. Reverse: Wheat stalks flanking legend.

In 1943 the world was at war and the United States could not spare copper for minting 1 cent coins. The military needed the metal for the production of shell casings, a use to which copper is well suited because its softness allows it to seal the gun powder behind the bullet but not grip too tightly on firing, as well as for airplane, warship, and artillery manufacture. A number of solutions were tried - ceramics, plastic, various alloys - before the mint, with congressional approval, settled on a steel core with a zinc coating. The 1944 annual report of the us mint indicates that the minting of steel-zinc cents and nickels saved 3,194 tons of copper, 350 tons of nickel, and 120 tons of zinc. Walter Breen estimated this as "the combined need of: two Cruisers, two Destroyers; 1,243 Flying Fortresses; 125 Field Guns; 120 Howitzers, or enough for 1 1/4 million shells for our Big Field Guns."

The coins were tolerated during the war but were a source of confusion because they looked like dimes. The zinc also did not stay bonded to the steel core, which in turn would corrode quickly when exposed. Shiny specimens that survive may well be re-plated. Of further interest for the collector is the small number of 1943 cents minted on 1942 copper planchets.

Lange, D., The Complete Guide to Lincoln Cents, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire (1996).

Vogel, B. and W. Breen, The Lincoln Cent Numisma: 1909-1997 (1998).