2009 1C Lincoln-Early Childhood, RD (Regular Strike)

The 2009 Lincoln Bicentennial: Birth and Early Childhood in Kentucky

The year 2009 marked the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. To celebrate, the United States Congress instructed the Treasury Department to issue a series of four new Lincoln Cents. Each design depicts a distinct period of Lincoln’s life, from his early childhood in Kentucky to his historic presidency during the American Civil War.

The first issue in the series was officially titled the "Birth and Early Childhood in Kentucky" cent. This coin depicts a log cabin similar to the one where Lincoln spent the first seven years of his life.

Abraham Lincoln in Kentucky

Abraham Lincoln was born to Thomas Lincoln, Sr. and Nancy Hanks Lincoln (often associated with her stepmother, Sarah Bush Lincoln, or relative Sarah Lincoln Grigsby in later records) on February 12, 1809. He was born in a one-room log cabin on Sinking Spring Farm in central Kentucky, the second of three children. His sister, Sarah, was born two years earlier; his younger brother, Thomas, Jr., born in 1812 or 1813, survived only three days. The family struggled in Kentucky as Thomas Lincoln faced constant title disputes, eventually losing nearly all his land. In 1816, the family moved to Indiana to start anew.

Lincoln’s original Kentucky cabin was likely disassembled before his death in 1865. Thirty years later, New York businessman and restaurateur Alfred W. Dennett purchased the Lincoln farm and reconstructed a cabin using logs purportedly from the original site. This version was exhibited at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis. The cabin was disassembled again after the exposition and its fate remains a mystery; some reports suggest the beams were used as firewood- a curious end for a supposed historical relic. Today, Lincoln’s birthplace is a National Historical Park. A neoclassical Memorial Building houses a symbolic log cabin, offering visitors a glimpse into the hardscrabble life of the American frontier.

Coin Launch Complications

The 2009 "Kentucky" cent was struck for circulation and released through Federal Reserve Banks in the standard fashion. Typically, new designs enter circulation within weeks, but 2009 was an anomaly.

On the heels of the Lehman Brothers collapse in late 2008, the nation was plunged into the Great Recession. As the federal government disbursed over $440 billion to shore up the banking system, demand for new circulating coinage plummeted. Mintages for 2009 reflected this sharp decline. Collectors, eager for the bicentennial celebration, were stymied as local banks exhausted old stocks before ordering new ones.

Impatience fueled a speculative bubble. Collectors purchased rolls at steep premiums online and through television coin shows. The United States Mint offered official two-roll sets (Philadelphia and Denver) for $8.95 plus shipping, limited to five sets per household. Due to perceived scarcity, these rolls quickly commanded $15 or more on the secondary market.

PCGS offered submitters First Day of Issue (#407824) labels for coins whose date of release could be verified. In total, PCGS certified 9,311 coins through this program, with 71.8% grading MS65RD. Superb Gems remain conditionally scarce; furthermore, because the 2009 United States Mint Uncirculated Coin Set versions were struck in the pre-1982 copper composition, any future business-strike submissions must be sourced from surviving original rolls.

Modern Numismatic Snippet

In a notable promotional event, coin dealer (and future U.S. Mint Director nominee) Paul Hollis gave away $10,000 face value of these cents to the public across Louisiana between Lincoln's birthday and Mardi Gras in 2009.

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