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John F. Kennedy 1964 Silver
Half Dollar
1964 90% Silver Half Dollar 30mm
LIBERTY 1964 John F. Kennedy
HALF DOLLAR – Eagle
You are bidding on the exact
item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime
Guarantee of Authenticity.
The Kennedy half dollar, first minted in 1964, is a
fifty-cent coin
currently issued by the
United States Mint
. Intended as a memorial to
the assassinated President
John F. Kennedy
, it was authorized by
Congress
just over a month after his death. Use
of existing works by Mint sculptors
Gilroy Roberts
and
Frank Gasparro
allowed
dies
to be prepared quickly, and striking of
the new coins began in January 1964.
The silver coins vanished from circulation upon their release in March 1964
due to collectors, hoarders, and those interested in a memento of the late
president. Although the Mint greatly increased production, the denomination was
seldom seen in circulation. Continued rises in the price of silver increased the
hoarding—many early Kennedy half dollars have been melted for their silver.
Starting with 1965-dated pieces, the percentage of fine silver was reduced from
90% to 40% (silver clad), but even with this change the coin saw little
circulation.
In 1971, silver was eliminated entirely from the coins. A special design for
the reverse of the half dollar was issued for the
United States Bicentennial
and was struck in
1975 and 1976. In addition to
business strikes
, special collector coins were
struck for the Bicentennial in silver clad; silver proof sets in which the dime,
quarter and half dollar were struck in 90% silver were first minted in 1992. In
2014 a special edition of the Kennedy half dollar was also struck in 99.99%
gold.
Even though ample supplies of circulating half dollars are now available,
their circulation is extremely limited. Since 2002, Kennedy half dollars have
only been struck to satisfy the demand from collectors, and are available at a
premium through the Mint.
Inception
Gilroy Roberts
‘ obverse (top) and
Frank Gasparro
‘s reverse (bottom)
of the John F. Kennedy Presidential series medal served as the basis
for the designs of the Kennedy half dollar.
Within hours of the
assassination of John F. Kennedy
on November
22, 1963, Mint Director
Eva Adams
called Chief Engraver
Gilroy Roberts
, informing him that serious
consideration was being given to depicting Kennedy on one of the larger silver
coins: either the
silver dollar
, half dollar, or
quarter dollar
. Adams called Roberts again on
November 27 and authorized the project, stating that the late president’s widow,
Jacqueline Kennedy
preferred that he be
depicted on the half dollar, replacing the
previous design
of
Benjamin Franklin
. Mrs. Kennedy’s reasoning was
that she did not want to replace
George Washington
on the quarter.
In the interest of time (the striking of the new coin was to begin in January
1964), Roberts modified the existing bust of Kennedy he had created for use on
the Kennedy medal in the Mint’s Presidential series, while
Frank Gasparro
began modifications to the
reverse he had created for the same medal. Both Roberts’ and Gasparro’s designs
had been approved by Kennedy. Roberts had met with Kennedy in person to show him
early models of the design; although the President expressed no opinion
regarding the depiction, Roberts decided to make some changes after meeting him.
After the Mint produced
trial strikes
, Jacqueline and
Robert Kennedy
were invited to view them. Mrs.
Kennedy viewed the designs favorably, but suggested that the hair be altered
slightly. It was also suggested that a full or half figure of the president be
used instead of the profile, but Roberts noted that there was not enough time to
produce an entirely new design because of the project’s time constraints, and
also that he believed the left profile would give a more attractive appearance.
Congressional approval was required for any design change within 25 years of
the last. In early December, Representative
Henry Gonzalez
(Democrat-Texas)
introduced a bill for Kennedy to appear on the half dollar. On December 10, the
new President,
Lyndon Johnson
, endorsed the call for a Kennedy
half dollar, asking Congress to pass the legislation promptly to allow striking
of the new piece to begin early in 1964. President Johnson stated that he had
been moved by letters from many members of the public to agree with the plan.
The bill to authorize the Kennedy half dollar passed on December 30, 1963. Work
was already underway on coinage dies; the use of the already-available designs
allowed for the completion of the first dies on January 2, 1964. Only
proof coins
were initially struck. The first
Kennedy half dollars intended for circulation were struck at the Denver Mint on
January 30, 1964, followed by the Philadelphia Mint the next week. A ceremonial
first strike was held at both Philadelphia and Denver on February 11, 1964.
Release
Initial popularity
Mint Director Eva Adams, seen here on her medal (designed by
Gasparro) was instrumental in the issuance of the Kennedy half
dollar.
The Treasury Department made the coins available to the public beginning on
March 24, 1964. A line a block long formed at the department’s windows in
Washington to purchase the 70,000 coins initially allocated for public sale.
Although the department limited sales to 40 per customer, by the end of the day,
the coins were gone, but the line had not shortened. Banks in Boston and
Philadelphia quickly rationed supplies, but still sold out by noon. Sales in New
York did not begin until the following day, and rationing was imposed there as
well, to the disgruntlement of the head of the coin department at
Gimbels
, the largest dealer in the city, which
had hoped to sell the coins at a premium.
The coins were popular overseas as well. U.S.
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
G. Mennen Williams
distributed plastic-encased
specimens to presidents and foreign ministers of African nations and to the U.S.
ambassadors serving there “to win friends for the United States in Africa”.
Shortly after the coin’s release, the Denver Mint began receiving complaints
that the new coin depicted a
hammer and sickle
on the bottom of Kennedy’s
truncated bust. In response, Roberts stated that the portion of the design in
question was actually his monogram, a stylized “GR“.
The Mint struck Kennedy half dollars in large numbers in an attempt to meet
the overwhelming demand. The Treasury had initially planned to issue 91 million
half dollars for 1964, but raised the number to 141 million. However, a public
announcement of the increase failed to cause more coins to actually circulate or
to decrease the prices on the secondary market. By late November, the Mint had
coined approximately 160 million pieces, yet the coin was almost never seen in
circulation. Silver prices were rising, and many coins were being hoarded.
Hopeful that issuing more 1964-dated coins would counter the speculation in
them, the Treasury requested and received Congressional authorization to
continue striking 1964-dated coins into 1965. Eventually, almost 430 million
half dollars dated 1964 were struck, a sum greater than the total struck for
circulation in the sixteen years of the Franklin half dollar series.
These minting operations were rapidly depleting the Treasury’s stock of
silver. Prices for the metal were rising to such an extent that, by early June,
a dime contained 9.33 cents’ worth of silver at market prices. On June 3, 1965,
President Johnson announced plans to eliminate silver from the dime and quarter
in favor of a clad sandwich with layers of copper-nickel on each side of a layer
of pure copper. The half dollar was changed from 90% silver to 40%. Congress
passed the
Coinage Act of 1965
in July. The new half
dollars retained their silvery appearance, due to the outer layer being
80% silver and 20% copper. The coin was also minted with an inner layer of
21% silver and 79% copper. The first clad half dollars were struck at the
Denver Mint
on December 30, 1965. They bore the
date 1965; the date would not be changed for US coins until the coin shortage
was eased. Beginning on August 1, 1966, the Mint began to strike 1966-dated
pieces, and thereafter it resumed the normal practice of striking the current
year’s date on each piece. Despite the proclaimed end to the coin shortage,
Kennedy half dollars circulated little, a scarcity caused by continued hoarding
and a dip in production, with the Treasury reluctant to expend more of the
nation’s silver holdings on a coin which did not circulate. According to coin
dealer and numismatic author
Q. David Bowers
,
Where the hundreds of millions of them went remains somewhat of a mystery
today. In the meantime,
Washington quarters
, the same design used
since 1932, became the highest value coin of the realm, in terms of
circulation use. These were particularly popular for vending machines,
arcade games, and the like. Today, this continues to be the case, and
Kennedy half dollars as well as the later mini-dollar coins, are almost
never encountered.”
Switch to base metal
For further information on the circulating commemorative quarters, half
dollars and dollars struck in 1975–1976, see
United States Bicentennial coinage
.
In May 1969, the Treasury sought authorization to eliminate the half dollar’s
silver content, changing it to the same copper-nickel clad composition as the
dime and quarter. The Treasury also sought approval to strike base-metal dollar
coins, which would fill a need for gaming tokens in Western casinos. Former
president
Dwight Eisenhower
had died recently, and there
was discussion of placing Eisenhower’s portrait on the dollar. The Treasury
hoped that with the removal of the silver content, the coin would cease to be
hoarded and again circulate. Despite the support of President
Richard Nixon
, some Republicans in the
House of Representatives
initially scuttled the
legislation, disliking the idea of putting Eisenhower on a
base metal
coin. The dispute dragged on for
over a year before Nixon signed a bill on December 31, 1970 which authorized the
Eisenhower dollar and eliminated silver from the half dollar. As a result of the
delay, in 1970 non-proof half dollars were only made in Denver and released
solely in mint sets. With a mintage of 2.1 million the 1970-D Kennedy is
considered the “key” to the series, although enough were produced to keep prices
modest. The Mint did not announce that 1970 half dollars would not be struck for
circulation until after mint set ordering had closed.
By the time silver was eliminated from the half dollar, it had been out of
circulation for so long that banks had eliminated the slot for the denomination
from machines. The Mint anticipated a comeback for the denomination, but in July
1971, Mint Director
Mary Brooks
disclosed that the Treasury was
holding 200 million of the new base metal half dollars, as commercial banks
expressed little interest in ordering them. “I can’t understand the population.
They’re not using them.” According to Brooks, most of the over one billion
Kennedy half dollars containing silver had been hoarded by the public. Brooks
theorized that because the silver Kennedy half dollar never circulated much and
few half dollars were struck in 1970 in anticipation of the authorization to
eliminate silver, the public had become accustomed to not seeing the half dollar
in trade. Brooks suggested, “If the country knew there were plenty of them
around, they’d probably start hoarding them, too.”
On March 5, 1973, Brooks announced that the Mint would be soliciting
new reverse designs
for the half dollar and
dollar to commemorate the 1976
United States Bicentennial
. On October 18,
President Nixon signed Public Law 93-127, which provided for new reverse designs
for the quarter, half dollar, and dollar. The designs were to be emblematic of
the Bicentennial era. The Mint announced a competition open to all American
sculptors. Seth G. Huntington’s design depicting
Independence Hall
was selected for the half
dollar. All half dollars struck in 1975 and 1976 bore the double date 1776–1976
on the obverse and Huntington’s design on the reverse. Over 521 million
Bicentennial half dollars were struck for circulation.
Following the high mintage of the Bicentennial piece, the number of pieces
struck per year declined. However, in 1979, Mint Director Stella B. Hackel
indicated that the Mint would continue to strike them. “We really don’t think
many half dollars are being used in commerce. They do go somewhere, though, so
someone must want them.” By then, more than 2.5 billion Kennedy half dollars had
been struck, more than all previously struck half dollars combined. The New
York Times numismatic columnist Ed Reiter suggested that hoarding had
continued even into the base-metal era, accounting for the shortage of pieces in
commerce. The late 1970s saw the destruction of many early Kennedy half dollars,
as high silver prices caused extensive melting for the metal content.
The coin continued to be struck through the remainder of the twentieth
century, and mintage numbers remained relatively steady in both the Philadelphia
and Denver mints
until 1987, a year in which no half dollars were struck for circulation; the
Treasury had accumulated a two-year supply of the pieces, making further
production unncessary.[36]
Demand for half dollars dropped, and casinos (where they were commonly used)
increasingly began producing fifty cent tokens to use in place of the coins.
With mintage numbers remaining low,
beginning in 2002, the Kennedy half dollar ceased to be struck for general
circulation. Rolls and bags of the current year’s pieces may be purchased from
the Mint, at a premium above face value.[34]
People line up to buy the new gold Kennedy half dollar, August 2014
In January 2014, a private firm, on behalf of the Mint, began surveying
customers on possible options for a special issue of the half dollar in
commemoration of its 50th anniversary.
[38]
In June, the Mint announced plans to
issue seven special 2014 Kennedy half dollars in commemoration of the series’
fiftieth anniversary: two in clad, from Philadelphia and Denver, four in silver
from Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, and the
West Point Mint
, and one in .9999 gold, from
West Point. The clad and silver versions bears the normal date; the gold coin
has the double date 1964–2014. All have higher relief than the usual issues.[39]
The gold coins were released in conjunction with the
American Numismatic Association
convention in
Rosemont, Illinois
on August 5, 2014.[40]
Collecting
A close-up image detailing the heavily accented hairlines present on
early Kennedy half dollar proof issues
With the exception of 1965 through 1967, proofs have been struck each year in
the same metallic composition as regular issue pieces.[41]
The first Kennedy half dollar proofs were struck in early January 1964. Early
strikes depicted Kennedy with heavily accented hair; an estimated 100,000 coins
were struck with this feature. This was altered for the remainder of the mintage
of nearly four million proof coins.
Due to the coin shortage, the Treasury Department announced that no proof sets
would be struck in 1965.[8]
Instead, Special Mint Sets would be struck to satisfy collector demand. Coins
for these sets, minted at the
San Francisco Assay Office
, were struck with no
mint marks early in 1966 with heavily polished dies dated 1965.[8]
Similar sets bearing the dates 1966 and 1967 were also struck.
A few of the 1966 halves from the Special Mint Sets are known with Gasparro’s
initials “FG” missing from the reverse, apparently because of an
overpolished die.
The first year’s production was sold in soft plastic packaging; the 1966 and
1967 issues were sonically sealed in hard plastic cases.
In 1968, regular proof coinage was resumed,
although production of proof coins was shifted to San Francisco and the “S”
mintmark added.
In 1973, Congress authorized silver-clad collector versions of the
Bicentennial coins; in April 1975, the Mint began to strike them.[41]
The coins were issued in both proof and uncirculated quality. Copper-nickel clad
Bicentennial coins were placed in both the 1975 and 1976 proof sets, while their
silver clad counterparts were sold in three coin sets.
Since 1992, the Mint has struck Kennedy half dollars in 90% silver for inclusion
in special silver proof sets. 1964 proofs were struck in Philadelphia, and since
1968, proof coins have been struck in San Francisco only.
In 1998, some silver proof pieces were struck to a
matte
finish for inclusion in a set along with
a Robert Kennedy
commemorative
silver dollar.[48]
From 2005–2010, uncirculated pieces included in mint sets received a matte
finish, which differentiates them from the pieces sold in bags and rolls.
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