Francis LeRoy Henning of Erial may not be a household name to most folks in New Jersey, but to treasure hunters and coin collectors, Henning's name is notorious for counterfeiting what coin enthusiasts call "The 1944 Henning Nickel."

In the early 1950s, Henning, a counterfeiter by trade, set out to fake Jefferson nickels from the World War II era (1942-45).

Henning did not set out to counterfeit nickels from the World War II era. He chose several random coins from circulation to use as models for his obverse dies, and used coins dated 1939, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1953 and apparently one other year. He got caught because his World War II era counterfeits, dated 1944, did not have the proper reverse with a large mint mark.

You will note the reference in my citation to Collectors Clearinghouse, which used to be a powerful force in the hobby for figuring out odd coins such as the Henning nickels and numerous die varieties and error coins. I had the privilege of working there from 1974 to 1978, though the Henning nickels were written up long before I got there.