Wheat pennies are American one cent coins produced between 1909 and 1958. The “wheat” is a reference to the stylized sheaves of wheat which decorate the back of this series of coinage. You may also hear wheat pennies referred to as wheatbacks, wheaties, or Lincoln wheat pennies. Prior to the introduction of the wheat penny, the United States Mint produced the Indian head penny, marked with the head of an Indian brave on the front and a wreath or laurel or oak, depending on the year, on the back. In 1959, the wheat design on the back was replaced with an engraving of the Lincoln Memorial.

The design of the wheat penny was created by Victor David Brenner, a sculptor from New York. The design features the head of Lincoln looking to the right on the front, with “In God We Trust” over Lincoln's head, the date of minting on the right, and “Liberty” on the left. On the back, two stalks of wheat cross at the bottom, wrapping up the sides of the coin to frame the words “ONE CENT,” with “e pluribus unum,” the motto of the United States, running across the top of the coin. Smaller lettering reading “United States of America” can be found just below the “ONE CENT” designation.

Several series of wheat pennies were remarkable, making them valuable to collectors. The most valuable pennies are the copper alloy pennies produced in 1943. Since pennies are, as a general rule, made from copper alloy, some people are surprised to learn this. In fact, the 1943 wheat pennies were made from zinc-coated steel, because copper was a valuable wartime commodity. The estimated 10 copper alloy coins produced by accident, therefore, are extremely valuable.

1909 coins with a stamp reading “VDB,” for the designer, under the stalks of wheat are also valuable, as are 1974 pennies made from aluminum. These pennies were produced as a test by the Mint, and never circulated, but a few can be found floating around on occasion. In 1955, a die error produced a series of double-stamped coins which are also sought after by collectors.

Incidentally, the Mint gets extremely riled up when people refer to a one cent coin as a “penny.” The proper term is, in fact, “cent,” although the Mint has largely given up on trying to convince people to refer to this coin as a “cent,” wheat or not.