Our Coin Collecting Starter Set for Lincoln Cents is both Inspiring & Educational!

This Coin Collecting Starter Set is a great way to learn about and start collecting the Lincoln Cent Series!  Included are the Whitman Lincoln Cents Folders One through Three, a 1 Pound Grab Bag of Lincoln Wheat Pennies in a Velvet Bag, and 10 different Lincoln Memorial Cents in brilliant uncirculated condition.

• Whitman Lincoln Cents 1909-1940 Folder 9004
  This three panel folder holds all business strikes from 1909 to 1940. It includes a total of 90 ports. Ports for coins in the series are labeled with the year, mint, and mintage figures. Additional ports are unlabeled at the end of the folder. 
• Whitman Lincoln Cents 1941-1974 Folder 9030 
  This three panel folder holds all business strikes from 1941 to 1974. It includes a total of 90 ports. Ports for coins in the series are labeled with the year, mint, and mintage figures. Additional ports are unlabeled at the end of the folder.
• Whitman Lincoln Cents from 1975-Date Folder 9033
  This three panel folder holds all business strikes from 1975 to Date. It includes a total of 90 ports. Ports for coins in the series are labeled with the year, mint, and mintage figures. Additional ports are unlabeled at the end of the folder.
• Lincoln Wheat Cents - Grab Bag of  Over 1 Pound
  The Lincoln Wheat Cents in this Grab Bag of Coins are selected at random and are circulated coins with varying dates and mints.  These coins come in a velour draw string pouch.  You will receive over 1 pound of Lincoln Wheat Cents!
• Lincoln Memorial Cents - 10 Different Brilliant Uncirculated Coins
  These Lincoln Memorial Pennies are in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. You will receive ten unique Lincoln Memorial Cents with different dates and/or mint marks.

• Lincoln Wheat Cent Series ran from 1909 through 1958
• Lincoln Memorial Cent  Series ran from 1959 through 2008
• Lincoln Bicentennial Cent Series ran in 2009
• Lincoln Shield Cent Series has run from 2010 to date

Lincoln Wheat Cents:

In the fall of 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned sculptor Victor David Brenner to design the Lincoln Wheat Cent to honor the 100th anniversary of President Lincoln's birth.  It was the first U.S. coin to feature the likeness of a historical figure, as well as the first cent to display the motto "IN GOD WE TRUST."  Upon its release in 1909, many banks ran out of them on the first day due to such high demand.

Lincoln Memorial Cents:

In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved a new version of the Lincoln Cent to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's birth.  Assistant engraver, Frank Gasparro, designed the new reverse side, replacing the Wheat Ears with the Lincoln Memorial.  The obverse remained unchanged until 1969 when the dies were modified to make Lincoln's head somewhat smaller.  In 1962, the composition of the Lincoln Memorial Cent was changed when the tin was removed to gain production advantages with no adverse effects on the quality.  Due to the high price of copper in the 1970's and 80's, the copper was replaced with copper plated zinc, which is how they are still produced today.  

Lincoln Bicentennial Cents:

The Presidential One Dollar Coin Act of 2005 required that the reverse of the Lincoln Cent be redesigned for 2009 in honor of the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. The coins were designed to be emblematic of four different stages of the 16th President's historic life: his birth and early childhood in Kentucky, his formative years in Indiana, his professional life in Illinois, and finally, his Presidency in Washington D.C. The design chosen for Lincoln's Birth was created by Richard Masters, and features the log cabin he was born and raised in. The second design, emblematic of Lincoln's Formative Years, features Lincoln reading while taking a break from rail-splitting and was the work of Charles Vickers. The third design, showing Lincoln's Professional Years, was crafted by Joel Iskowitz, and shows Lincoln standing in front of the Illinois State Capitol as a young lawyer. The final design was produced by Susan Gamble. It shows the half completed dome of the U.S. Capitol Building, an approximation of what the construction would have looked like during Lincoln's Presidency. 

Lincoln Shield Cents:

In 2005, the U.S. Congress passed the legislation known as Public Law 109-145.  While this law is more famous for the creations of both the Presidential Dollar coin series and the 2009 Bicentennial Lincoln Cents, it also included direction for the Secretary of the Treasury to create cents with a new design to begin in 2010.  Section 303 of this law allowed for the creation of this new Lincoln cent, one with the familiar obverse, featuring the Victor David Brenner Lincoln portrait on the obverse, and a newly designed reverse.  This new design was required to "bear an image emblematic of President Lincoln's preservation of the United States of America as a single and united country."<

The finalized design of the 2010 Lincoln Cent was chosen in June 2009.   The design was a creation of Lyndall Bass, and includes 13 stripes on the Union Shield with the Inscription "United States of America" across the top of the design (similar to the designs of the Memorial Cent and the Bicentennial Cent), "E. Pluribus Unum" on the top of the shield, and the denomination of "One Cent" across the shield.  The 13 stripes honor the Union States from the beginning of the U.S. Civil War, and the cap of the shield signifies their solidarity.  The Shield design has been in use in the U.S. since the 1780's, and was also commonly seen during the Civil War.  It was noted by the U.S. Mint at the unveiling of the new design that the Union Shield appears many times within the U.S. Capitol building.  These depictions were produced by the painter Constantino Brumidi, an artist that was active during Lincoln's presidency.