Does anybody remember Kennedy Looks at Lincoln?

relayer

30 years or so ago I remember buying Lincoln cents with a small portrait of JRK stamped on it facing Lincoln. They sold for a couple of bucks.

Is anybody doing something like that nowadays?

mdwoods

I remember those coins. I am not aware of anything like that being made now, but I'll try a search and see what I can come up with. mdwoods

I did have a set of 1977 or 79 Lincolns in a coinboard. 50 Lincolns, each differently stamped on the obverse with a small outline of one of the fifty states. Ha, they were at least 20 years ahead of the state quarter program.

dwood

I remember them also, and in fact, I'm pretty sure I have a handful somewhere. There's a small dealer who only shows at a local, monthly flea-market who I recall having them within the past year or two. I seem to recall his were attached to a card with some explanation/history on the two Presidents.

I don't know of anyone doing something similar today either, other than the usual "novelty machines" that destroy a penny and stamp it with "I made it through Fat Man's Squeeze" or "I met Mr. PoppaGeorgio at Binion's" or something similar

StillLurking

" I did have a set of 1977 or 79 Lincolns in a coinboard. 50 Lincolns, each differently stamped on the obverse with a small outline of one of the fifty states. "

Some guy named mdwoods sent me a set of 1979's exactly as you described! They're still in the coinboard and awaiting a chance to be framed for display in our den. Thanks again, Mark!

- bohica

dakra

I tried to find the article I found about a year ago but it doesn't pop up on Yahoo. I don't remember all the details but I believe the person who did this lived locally to me in Valley Streamm NY. As the story goes, he mass produced the Lincoln penny with the JFK impression right above the date.

From what I remember, the guy was on trial for "Defacing" the coins, his plead was pretty weak as he stated he was creating a collectors item... or something of that nature.

If I can find the article, I will pass it along.

-Dave

coindaughter

You mean like this one?

dwood

That's the one my local flea market dealer has a box full of. At least he did a year or so ago

Geoman

I actually found one of those in change this past fall. Pretty neat at the time, because I had no idea of it. But learned pretty quick it was just a novelty item. Still, a fun find going through rolls.

relayer

Coindaughter-

Yep. And that's one of the fancy ones that came on a card.

Poor guy saved 16 of them for 30 years and can't even get 50c a pop.

DMWJR

I've got a couple of dozen if anybody wants one. I'll mail it for free. PM with address gets one.

coppercoins

Ahh...counterstamped Lincolns...

I have seen many different designs stamped onto Lincolns, and I have quite a few of them.

By far the Kennedy looking at Lincoln is one of the more common ones. A person could almost literally collect a date set of them. They are typically available on most dates from 1963 until the late 70s and then some. They were typically handed out as advertising for financial institutions and insurance companies, usually glued to a card containing many little factoids that connect Lincoln to Kennedy in bizarre ways other than the fact that they were both assassinated. Things such as the fact that Lincoln had a Kennedy working for him and Kennedy had a Lincoln working for him.

Other Lincoln counterstamps I have encountered include:

1. Masonic emblems of different sizes and shapes.
2. Lincoln smoking a cigar.
3. Lincoln smoking a pipe.
4. Lincoln reading a bible.
5. Lincoln and the 50 states.
6. The Liberty Bell.
7. The bicentennial star.
8. The date 1776 above the 1976 on 1976 Lincoln cents.
9. Lincoln with a rose.
10. The shriner's logo.
11. The Girl Scout logo.
12. The Boy Scout logo.
13. Two letter abbreviations to full names.

I'm sure there are plenty I have either missed or forgotten, but these are probably most of the typical ones. I have a complete set of the states from 1974, and have collected nearly half of another set from change. One of my most recent in these is a 1990 with Utah stamped on it.

While none of these typically carry much value at all, they are fun to pull out of change and collect. The number of them out there has to be vast, I find myself answering plenty of e-mail about them to people who find them and don't know what they are.

1jester

Yes, there are many designs counterstamped onto the Lincoln cent over 2 decades (I don't know if the practise is still on-going). I've also seen a heart, and some others I can't remember offhand. I wonder if these will ever become extremely valuable?!