Liberty Seated Half Dollar

All About the Liberty Seated Half Dollar

The Liberty Seated Half Dollar was issued between 1839 and 1886 by the United States mint. This coin is 90% silver and the current melt value is $28.77 This coin was in circulation for 57 years. To put this in perspective the Walking Liberty was for 31 years, and the Franklin for just 15 years.

With what is perhaps the longest design use for a half dollar in the United States, the Seated Liberty Half Dollar was in use from 1839 until it was replaced by the Barber Half Dollar in 1892. While the basic design by Christian Gobrecht saw few modifications during this time span, there were changes which led to different weights for the coin, even though the overall diameter and silver content remained constant.

Although the coin was minted at San Francisco, Carson City, New Orleans and Philadelphia and consisted of the usual 90% silver and 10% copper mix with a diameter of 32.5 millimeters, government legislation changed the weight three times over the course of production. These weights were:

• 1839 to 1852 – 13.36 grams
• 1853 to 1873 – 12.44 grams
• 1874 to 1891 – 12.5 grams

While the thickness and the diameter of the coin didn’t change, the weight differences were accounted for by different design features including arrows and rays which means there were actually multiple designs for the Liberty Seated Half Dollar, although the core design remained the same.

Due to the exceptionally long production run for the Liberty Seated Half Dollar, there are quite a few readily available on the market. Values for these coins are all over the map with common ones usually running about 1.5 to 2x silver spot value with rare coins in MS conditions capable of running in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Not only do mint marks and condition make a difference in price but die cracks, design changes such as drapery/no drapery, motto size and the inclusion of arrows and rays will make a difference as well. Any Liberty Seated Half Dollar in MS66 state or better will be well over the $10,000 mark while those in Good condition, with the exception of the rarities, will consistently be in the $30 to $50 range.

Barber Half Dollar

The Barber Half Dollar was issued between 1892 and 1916 and was part of the “Barber Coinage”. Barber coinage consists of Barber Dimes, Barber Quarters, and Barber Dimes. It sounds confusing to me but that’s they way they rolled back then..get it rolled…coin rolled…Hehe. The Barber Half Dollar was also called the Liberty Head Half Dollar and is 90% silver coinage with a melt value of $28.77.

More About the Barber Half Dollar

Due to public dissatisfaction with the Seated Liberty coinage in use since the 1830’s and the passage of the Coinage Act of 1890 which stated a coin could be replaced by the Mint after a coin had been issued for 25 years, a new series of coins including the dime, quarter and half dollar were designed and issued. The Barber Half Dollar, named for designer and Chief Mint Engraver Charles E. Barber. Although discussions and design competitions were held throughout the late 1880’s, none of the artistic designs entered was deemed acceptable. This led then Mint Director Edward O. Leech to bring the design project in-house.

Although there were many disagreements between Leech and Barber which led to multiple design modifications, a final design for the Barber coins (dime, quarter and half dollar) were approved by President Harrison and his cabinet in October, 1891. Public reviews for the new coins were mixed with some critics panning the coins while others gave them high marks for classic design, the coins began circulation in 1892 and continued production until 1916 when the Barber Half Dollar was replaced by the Walking Liberty Half Dollar.

Since government legislation gave parameters for coinage, the Barber Half Dollar adhered to those standards. This meant it weight 12.5 grams and consisted of 90% silver and 10% copper and were 30.31 millimeters in diameter. Overall circulation totaled over 213 million Barber Half Dollars from the Denver, San Francisco, New Orleans and Philadelphia Mints. While this does make it a fairly common coin, a Barber Half Dollar from any year in virtually any condition holds a value much higher than silver spot value and certain years/mintages including the 1896-O, 1897-O and 1904-S are exceptionally rare and command an extremely high premium, especially those in Very Fine and Uncirculated conditions.

Walking Liberty Half Dollar

Walking Liberty Half Dollars were issued from the US mint between 1916 and 1947. They are also often called Walkers (not the ones from the Walking Dead), or Standing Liberty Half Dollars. These coins are rarely found in circulation and are 90% silver with a melt value of $28.77. That being said we have found a few when searching half dollar rolls.

More About the Walking Liberty Half Dollar

After the Coinage Act of 1890 gave the US Mint director “permission” to change the design of coins that had been in service 25 years or more, new Mint director Robert W. Woolley decided to update coins the current coins. Thus, in 1915, new designs to replace the Barber coinage (dimes, quarters and half dollars) were commissioned. Adolph A. Weinman won the competition for the half dollar sponsored by the Commission of Fine Arts and, although his design was difficult to implement and never struck well, still became the Walking Liberty Half Dollar which began circulation in 1918 and continued production through 1947 when it was replaced with the Franklin Half Dollar.

There were several issues with the original design aside from the strike quality issues. Initial designs showed flaws with the edge and issues with weight and thickness also had to be overcome. The original design by Weinman was modified several times through 1916 and 1917 to accommodate these issues, although the artistic design he conceived remained intact. All mints had problems striking the Walking Liberty Half Dollar and, although the dies were modified several times over the course of production, none of the modifications to improve striking were successful.

Adhering to government regulations, the Walking Liberty Half Dollar is 90% silver and 10% copper and weighs 12.5 grams. It is 30.61 millimeters in diameter and was minted in San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. Even though production of the Walking Liberty Half Dollar exceeded 1.2 billion coins, they have a highly collectable appeal, especially those in Very Fine and Uncirculated condition. Regardless of the availability, the Walking Liberty Half Dollar commands a premium well over silver spot prices for any year and virtually any condition. The exceptions to this are the 1921-D and 1921-S Walking Liberty Half Dollars in VF and U grades which, due to their rarity, have exceptional value.

Franklin Half Dollar

Minted from 1948 to 1963 the Franklin Half dollar is a popular choice for those wishing to invest in silver half dollars from the mid 20th century. This coin is 90% silver and has a current melt value of $28.77 Ben Franklin Half Dollars can still be found in circulation although they are rare.

While not the most popular nor the most valuable of collectable coins, the (Ben) Franklin Half Dollar is still an important part of American coinage history. Owing to the fact that Congressional action is required to replace coins unless it has been in service over 25 years, when the Walking Liberty Half Dollar and Mercury Dime came up for replacement in 1941, the United States Mint was embroiled in other problems because of World War II. After the war, the Mercury Dime was replaced by the Roosevelt Dime as a tribute to fallen President Franklin. D. Roosevelt. This meant the only coin Mint Director Nellie Taylor Ross felt could reasonably replace was the Walking Liberty Half Dollar which circulated from 1948 until 1963 when it was replaced with the Kennedy Half Dollar.

The Franklin Half Dollar wasn’t totally without controversy. The artist who produced the design, John R. Sinnock, had placed his initials on the cutoff at Franklin’s shoulder which led some to write letters stating the letters were a tribute to Joseph Stalin. On the reverse, the small eagle (required by Congress on any coinage larger than a dime) caused the design to be disapproved by the Commission of Fine Arts. Since the Commission of Fine Arts was only acting in an advisory manner, their disapproval was ignored and the coins began circulation on April, 30, 1948.

As was the standard at the time, the Franklin Half Dollar is 90% silver and 10% copper and weighs in at 12.5 grams. It is 30.1 millimeters in diameter and was minted in Denver, San Francisco and Philadelphia. The mint mark is located on the reverse at the top above the Liberty Bell in the center. The most collectable of these coins is what is known as the “Bugs Bunny” 1955-P which apparently shows protruding teeth and a detached nose. This was caused by a “die clash” which results when damage occurs to the die when the obverse and reverse dies strike together without a planchet, or blank coin, between them. While not significantly more expensive than a standard high grade Franklin Half Dollar, these still command a premium.

Kennedy Half Dollar

The Kennedy Half Dollar issued in 1964 was a 90% silver half dollar issued by the United States mint. From 1965 to 1970 this coin was issued as 40% silver. All coins from 1971 to current are copper and nickel. 90% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars have a melt value of $28.77  while those with 40% silver only have a melt of $11.77

As an honorarium to assassinated President John F. Kennedy, the Kennedy Half Dollar was designed, approved and put into circulation in less than 3 months after his death. Within hours of his death, then current Mint Director Eva Adams contacted Chief Engraver Gilroy Roberts to inform him that serious consideration was being given to putting Kennedy on one of the large silver coins. After consultation with Jacqueline Kennedy, the half dollar was selected and the production of the Kennedy Half Dollar was approved.

Since the obverse was simply a modified design of the Kennedy Medal, only the reverse was necessary to design. With minor modifications from the trial strikes in December, 1963, the coin was approved by Jacqueline and Robert Kennedy and was endorsed by new President Lyndon B. Johnson on December 10th. Congressional legislation approving the new coin was passed on December 30th, 1963. Production officially began on January 30, 1964 and continues today.

Although the Kennedy Half Dollar has always been 31 millimeters with a reeded edge, the 1964 and 1964-S minting of the Kennedy Half Dollar adhered to the 90% silver/10% copper used in all silver coins at the time which made the coin weigh in at 12.5 grams. Due to the popularity and collectability of the Kennedy Half Dollar, not only were few coins ever in circulation, but the hoarding led to an increase in the price of silver. This led to the Coinage Act of 1965 which changed the coin consistency to an 80% silver/20% copper clad over a 79% copper/21% silver core which dropped the weight to 11.5 grams.

When this failed to increase the percentage of Kennedy Half Dollars in circulation, the Treasury Department sought to remove all silver from the half dollar. President Richard Nixon signed the legislation into law in December, 1970. This led to the formulation of the Kennedy Half Dollar to now be 75% Copper/25% Nickel over a 100% Copper core which changed the weight to 11.3 grams. Since the Kennedy Half Dollar was rarely seen in circulation, banks had eliminated the half dollar slot in drawers and machines. This led to a surplus of the new base metal half dollars because no banks were willing to circulate them.

Although there were around 425 million 1964 Kennedy Half Dollars minted and well over 860 million minted from 1965 through 1970, many of these have been melted down for their silver content. In 1975 and 1976, the U.S. Mint struck the Kennedy Half Dollar with a different reverse depicting Independence Hall honoring America’s Bicentennial. Starting in 1992, the U.S. Mint has issued a certain amount of Kennedy Half Dollars in 90% silver for Silver Mint Sets and from 2005 through 2010, Kennedy Half Dollars included in Mint Sets had a matte finish to differentiate them from coins sold in bags and rolls.