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 Replies: 35 / Views: 1,855 |
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Valued Member
United States
52 Posts |
Back in 2019, I was gifted a 5-gallon jar of cents by my dear old Dad. Earlier this week, I started searching this jar again. I did $10 worth today, and weighing what I searched earlier this week indicated I searched $36 worth in total this time around. The jar has gone down from half-full to a third full. Today's $10 search yielded 204 95% copper cents, four Canada 1 cents, and a single Wheat cent, a 1942. Nothing truly earth-shattering thus far, but here are some highlights: Wheat cents: 1918-S 1936 1942 1945 1946 1951 1951-D 1951-S 1955-D (possible D/S) 1956 1956-D 1957-D 1958-D (two)  17 S-mint and some nice AU Memorials, starting with a 59-D:  28 2009-P and 12 2009-D Lincoln Bicentennial cents...a full set of all 8. My favorite of the series is the Formative Years reverse, and I was delighted to find 14 of them. Many of these had awful spotting and I did a bit of work to conserve what's left of the surfaces on those particular coins...  28 Canada 1 Cent, starting with a 1943:  My favorites? The 1957-D Wheat steals the show here. Also, as a lad in the 1970s, I never did find a 1973-S for my collection, but three of them turned up in this week's search. Edited by Bear906
03/27/2025 01:37 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5230 Posts |
Great finds. Are you searching errors/varieties too? Glad the bottom stayed in the jar when you were moving it!  |
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
17537 Posts |
Very nice finds, Bear906!
Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17188 Posts |
Jars and coins...they were meant to be together.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
8732 Posts |
Congrats Bear, but now you have to check the Canadian cents and see what you have , 1965 you have 4 different types and the 2006 you have 6 different types. Also in the 50's and 60's you have hanging #'s , just giving you some more work to do don't want you to get bored.
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Moderator
United States
160786 Posts |
Nice mix!  |
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Valued Member
 United States
52 Posts |
Quote:
Congrats Bear, but now you have to check the Canadian cents and see what you have , 1965 you have 4 different types and the 2006 you have 6 different types. Also in the 50's and 60's you have hanging #'s , just giving you some more work to do don't want you to get bored. I've got about $10 worth of Canadian cents here. Am hoping to find a concise guide somewhere regarding Canada 1 cent varieties to be on the lookout for. Even with Canada withdrawing the cent from circulation in 2012, I still receive them in change here in neighbouring Michigan with about the same frequency as before 2012.
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Valued Member
United States
52 Posts |
Quote:
Great finds. Are you searching errors/varieties too? Glad the bottom stayed in the jar when you were moving it! After getting everything sorted by date and mint, I'll be checking for varieties and errors. It's much more efficient to focus on one date/mint combination at a time. I'm not a cent specialist, but with about $130 worth of cents on hand, this is a golden opportunity to learn more about the series. The plan for this accumulation: 1. Keep the wheat cents 2. Keep the Canadian cents 3. Keep all varieties and errors of interest 4. Keep a roll of the top-condition examples of each date/mint combo. I have not decided if I will set aside any Shield Reverse cents, which I find to be a loathsome design--those are currently "spenders". 5. Maybe keep all the pre-1992 mintmarked cents for further RPM study 6. Put the rest back into circulation. I pay for everything with exact change, keep a coin dispenser in the car, and bring a cent tube with 25 cents to use at self-checkout at the grocery. I've spent about $5 in zinc cents so far this year.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
4378 Posts |
That's a fine set of finds for one-third of the remaining half jar. That suggests you have about two more batches of similar size. Good luck, maybe the best stuff is layered on the bottom, like fossils. Perhaps an Indian Head cent is lurking down there? =) |
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Valued Member
United States
52 Posts |
Quote:That's a fine set of finds for one-third of the remaining half jar. That suggests you have about two more batches of similar size. Good luck, maybe the best stuff is layered on the bottom, like fossils. Perhaps an Indian Head cent is lurking down there? =) The keepers have tended to run in layers in this jar. And, 99 keepers out of 3600 coins works out to 1 in 36, which does make for an interesting hunt. Dad said he filled the jar with pocket change and cherry-picked most of the wheat cents. I find it more likely that he won $100 on a football bet and got paid in "pennies", which is a time-honored and almost sacred tradition around here. He didn't go through these before dumping them in, and that accounts for the goodies that I've been finding. 
Edited by Bear906
03/27/2025 12:32 pm
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Bedrock of the Community
Canada
20069 Posts |
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Valued Member
United States
52 Posts |
Thanks, JimmyD! That's very helpful!
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
57286 Posts |
Nice finds so far. Errers and Varietys.
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Valued Member
United States
52 Posts |
Just went through another $10. Highlights include a lone 1946-D Wheat, 1960 Small Date, four S-mint Memorials, and 8 Canadian cents. Just two 2009 cents turned up, a P-mint Birthplace and a D-mint Presidency with horrible surfaces. My efforts to conserve the coin were a colossal failure, stripping all patina while the corrosion wouldn't budge. Yuck! $2.01 in bronze cents turned up, consistent with the $2.04 found in the last $10.  |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
8732 Posts |
Agree with JimmyD on that link. Where in Mich. are you ? Probably in the lower half. I'm in the Soo.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
57286 Posts |
Quote:
Highlights include a lone 1946-D Wheat, 1960 Small Date, four S-mint Memorials, and 8 Canadian cents. Nice finds. 
Errers and Varietys.
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Replies: 35 / Views: 1,855 |
Posted 03/27/2025 01:37 am
