Is Francis LeRoy Henning Still Alive?

[Coins4Cheese]

Is the person that made those famous 'henning nickels' still alive? If not, when did he die?

 

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[Siegfried Schlagrule]

There are 15 listings in the Social Security Death Index of Francis Henning but they do not list middle names there. They list birthdates and place of issue. Need more details to find the data. Suggest a google search of name and what he did to get information. siegfried schlagrule

 

[cw0909]

i dont know if he is still alive, but thought this interesting, had never heard this b4

Another 200,000 are thought to have been dumped in the Schuylkill River.

An unofficial variety of the wartime coin dated 1944 was made in 1954 when counterfeit nickels were produced by Francis LeRoy Henning of Erial, New Jersey. He had previously been arrested for counterfeiting $5 bills. The 1944 nickels were quickly spotted since Henning neglected to add the large mintmark.[3] He also made counterfeit nickels dated 1939, 1946, 1947, and possibly 1953 as well as one other unidentified date.[4] It is estimated that more than 100,000 of Henning's nickels reached circulation. These can still be found in pocket change, and there is a thriving collectors' market for them, although owning a counterfeit is technically illegal. Henning dumped another 200,000 nickels in Copper Creek, New Jersey, of which only 14,000 were recovered. Another 200,000 are thought to have been dumped in the Schuylkill River. When caught, Henning was sentenced to 3 years in jail, and was required to pay a $5,000 fine.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel_(United_States_coin)

 

[West Jersey Detecting]

I am on it. I have spoken to eyewitnesses and have located the spot where 200,000 coins were dumped. 14,000 were recovered by the secret service.

I am waiting for permission from the landowner.

 

[mdwyer]

Francis Leroy Henning was born on September 18, 1891 and died on Nov. 27, 1968.

 

[MarkGable71]

Francis Leroy Henning was born on September 18, 1891 and died on Nov. 27, 1968.

@mdwyer Thanks for providing Francis LeRoy Henning's date of death. Have you found any articles/obituaries/grave locations for him by any chance? I am fascinated by his story.

PS. I am also looking for a copy of the book written by Dwight Stuckey called "The Counterfeit 1994 Jefferson Nickel", in case anyone has a copy for sale?

 

[KSDirtfisher77]

What do these Henning's nickels look like? What gives them the distinguished look or marks? I've never heard of this, Thanks for the info. Will give a reason to keep my eye on nickels Does anyone on this site have a known example? They could post a pic of. So if a guy finds a 1944 nickel without the big mint mark above Monticello, Its a Henning's nickel.

 

[fyrffytr1]

Here's an interesting article on the subject. Now, I have to look at all my old nickels!

A Collectible Counterfeit? The Story of Henning Nickels

By Tyler Rossi for CoinWeek ..... A few years ago, I decided to start coin roll hunting, and with $25 I opened an account at the nearest bank that had a

coinweek.com

 

[MarkGable71]

What do these Henning's nickels look like? What gives them the distinguished look or marks? I've never heard of this, Thanks for the info. Will give a reason to keep my eye on nickels Does anyone on this site have a known example? They could post a pic of. So if a guy finds a 1944 nickel without the big mint mark above Monticello, Its a Henning's nickel.

The 1944 is the easiest to identify, because there is no mint mark above Monticello, like the other war-time nickels had. Most (but not all) of his forgeries have a slight defect in the left leg of the "R". The only real way to tell is to weigh the coins. A normal nickel weighs 5.0 grams. The Henning forgeries will weigh 5.4 grams.

 

[KSDirtfisher77]

The 1944 is the easiest to identify, because there is no mint mark above Monticello, like the other war-time nickels had. Most (but not all) of his forgeries have a slight defect in the left leg of the "R". The only real way to tell is to weigh the coins. A normal nickel weighs 5.0 grams. The Henning forgeries will weigh 5.4 grams.

May I ask if this is allowed on this forum. But what is something like that worth? Thanks for them pics. I really have to go thru my nickels now, cause I'm sure I got a 44 with no mint mark above Monticello. I thought it was awful strange when I recieved it in change that it had no mint mark.

 

[MarkGable71]

May I ask if this is allowed on this forum. But what is something like that worth? Thanks for them pics. I really have to go thru my nickels now, cause I'm sure I got a 44 with no mint mark above Monticello. I thought it was awful strange when I recieved it in change that it had no mint mark.

I don't know what we are and are not allowed to post regarding prices, but if you search the "sold" items in eBay, it can give you a good range. The 1944 are obviously more common, because their error is so blatant. The others take some work by weighing and examining each coin.

 

[SD51]

i dont know if he is still alive, but thought this interesting, had never heard this b4

Another 200,000 are thought to have been dumped in the Schuylkill River.

An unofficial variety of the wartime coin dated 1944 was made in 1954 when counterfeit nickels were produced by Francis LeRoy Henning of Erial, New Jersey. He had previously been arrested for counterfeiting $5 bills. The 1944 nickels were quickly spotted since Henning neglected to add the large mintmark.[3] He also made counterfeit nickels dated 1939, 1946, 1947, and possibly 1953 as well as one other unidentified date.[4] It is estimated that more than 100,000 of Henning's nickels reached circulation. These can still be found in pocket change, and there is a thriving collectors' market for them, although owning a counterfeit is technically illegal. Henning dumped another 200,000 nickels in Copper Creek, New Jersey, of which only 14,000 were recovered. Another 200,000 are thought to have been dumped in the Schuylkill River. When caught, Henning was sentenced to 3 years in jail, and was required to pay a $5,000 fine.

Nickel (United States coin) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Wonder if he paid the $5000 fine with Nickels?

 

[RGINN]

I got one of those. I knew it was different and took me about 40 years to figure out what it was. I don't think it's worth much. I posted it here before, and so far the secret service hasn't come out to get it.

 

[RGINN]

 

[KSDirtfisher77]

View attachment 2034431View attachment 2034433

I would think being counterfeit, they would hold a little bit of value. Wonder if the hennings nickle had any silver content like the real war nickles.

 

[MarkGable71]

I am on it. I have spoken to eyewitnesses and have located the spot where 200,000 coins were dumped. 14,000 were recovered by the secret service.

I am waiting for permission from the landowner.

Did you ever get permission to search?

 

[West Jersey Detecting]

Did you ever get permission to search?

The army corps of engineers dumped tons of fill on the spot to prevent recovery back in the 1950's. I do plan on attempting again in the fall.