You NEVER CLEAN a coin. And your specimen has already been harshly cleaned. Which devalues it considably.
Never clean coins. Especially if you are not an expert at conserving them. In the old days people did clean their coins, before it was determined that this was permanent damage to the coins surface. With the naked eye a cleaned coin might appear "shiny" but in fact depending upon the solvents, and abrasives used, it will strip the coin of any original mint luster, and will leave hairline scratches all over the coin.
The scratches on this coin appear that he probably cleaned them. In this case they were "scrubbed" which is bad. Sometimes some old coins can be gently cleaned, and after many decades, they will "retone" and be acceptable. Fortunately this is not a very valuable coin. Perhaps $25 or $30 if it was not cleaned. The silver value is only worth $11 currently, and the coin is worth maximum $15-$20.
Thank you. I have Morgan and Peace dollars and old half dollars and a bucket of pennies. I need to go through them but not sure where to start.
This is only a guide, it's pretty close to retail prices. But it will show you which coins are valuable. The menu on the left will allow you to look at other coins. It is important to learn how to "grade"your coins. https://www.usacoinbook.com/coins/small-cents/lincoln-wheat-cent/
The coin absolutely has had a past run in with a less than careful individual, but don't let this impact your appreciation for it and simply because of the family connection. Welcome to the forum.
