Seeing the recent headlines of the drought sweeping the country and failing crops (not to make light of that, as it will affect us all), got me thinking of the ‘wheaties’ I have in my found money collection. The wheat penny was minted from 1909 to 1958, and gets it’s name from the two ears of wheat on the reverse of the coin. I think it says a lot about the role that agriculture played in our economy, and the ears of wheat on the penny is testament to that.
So, I know you are desperate to find out how many wheat pennies are in my collection!? Well I have scavenged 14 from the streets of America so far. And here is the list of years and (amounts):
- 1936 (1)
- 1939 (1)
- 1940 (1)
- 1941 (1)
- 1942 (2)
- 1947 (1)
- 1955 (2)
- 1956 (1)
- 1957 (4)
So what are they worth? Hands up who thinks they are worth 14 cents!? Wrong, the wheat penny would seem to be in demand. as per this table from about.com this is what they are worth today:
- 1936 (10 cents)
- 1939 (10 cents)
- 1940 (10 cents)
- 1941 (10 cents)
- 1942 (2 x 10 cents)
- 1947 (3 cents)
- 1955 (2 x 3 cents)
- 1956 (3 cents)
- 1957 (4 x 3 cents)
So the sum total of my wheat penny collection has a “retail” value of 84 cents. Not bad for 14 cents found on the sidewalk! Should I adjust my current balance of money found to reflect the retail value of my wheat pennies?
-Luke Sidewalker
-Current balance $35.56
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