Beginning hobbyists use the term “no mint mark” because they heard it on social media, believing their Philadelphia coin is a rarity. For decades, the Philly mint was the sole US facility, so no mark was needed. That changed in 1942.
Nickel was needed for the war effort to harden the steel armor of tanks, ships and aircraft. The new variety 1942 “war nickel” was made with an alloy of 56% copper, 35% silver and 9% manganese.
To distinguish one 1942 nickel from the other, the US Mint added the letter “P” to the reverse atop the Monticello device, the first time that mintmark was used. Hobbyists started collecting so-called “war nickels (1942-45) because of the new design and precious metal.
Then, in 1954, people started finding 1944 nickels with missing mintmarks on the reverse. Collectors took note in hope of finding a rarity and did what they normally do, weighing the anomaly. To their surprise, the missing mintmark nickel weighed 5.4 grams rather than 5 grams.
The Secret Service was alerted about a possible counterfeiter. The agency knew reputed ones and scanned their files, leading to the arrest of this man, Francis Leroy Henning.
Henning had been incarcerated earlier because he counterfeited $5 bills, worth about $60 in today’s money. Perhaps he thought he could get away with faking a lower denomination, like a nickel. , Authorities discovered that he had faked nickels dated 1939, 1944, 1946, 1947 and 1953.
If you are interested in learning more about the Henning nickel, purchase or ask your library to acquire Joseph P. Cronin’s 2024 book, The Henning Nickel Collectors’ Guide. CoinWeek has a nifty article by Tyler Rossi.
You also can find detailed diagnostics about Henning nickels at Error-Rev.com.
The Proxiblog article simplifies the hunting process and warns against scammers on eBay.
So if you’re roll hunting or sifting through pocket change, the two things you need to remember to find Henning nickels are the missing mintmark on 1944 and the larger weights, 5.4 grams, on all nickels dated 1939, 1944, 1946, 1947 and 1953.
You won’t find uncirculated Henning nickels because he used circulated transfer dies.
ICG holders counterfeit Henning Nickels, as shown below:
Typically these retail anywhere from $250-600.
Be wary of raw coins on eBay claiming to be Henning nickels. You’ll find altered reverses in the 1944 nickel. If sellers do not reference weight, do not bid on or buy the raw coin. If they do mention weight, still make sure that they accept returns. Your scale is the one that matters.
Here’s a sketchy example on eBay:
The seller writes, “Coin weighs 4.4 grams. We believe it to be a Henning nickel and not minted by the US. Nickel is porus (sic), smaller and lighter than a regular Jefferson nickel. Is not graded and we do not guarantee it to be a US nickel or a Henning though we strongly suspect it to be the latter.”
If you read this far, you know from the above description that this is not a Henning nickel, as the seller put down 4.4 grams instead of 5.4 grams. And of course, the seller doesn’t accept returns.
If you like posts like this, please subscribe so you can get our weekly newsletter and be informed whenever there is a new article or column.
Proxiblog also has hundreds of followers on Facebook Coin Groups. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.
You can find more information about errors and varieties as well as buying and bidding on coins in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider purchasing the work for yourself or a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist website. Thank you.
