Vermillion Enterprises – We Buy & Sell 40% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars!
Vermillion Enterprises specializes in gold & silver. 40% Silver, 90% Silver, and 99.9% Silver. Including 40% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars.
Historical Markers – How did we get to 40%?
90% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars
1964 KENNEDY HALF DOLLARS – 90% Silver
President Kennedy was assassinated in November of 1963. By February 1964, a First Strike was held at TWO U.S. Mints in his honor. Philadelphia and Denver. The 90% Silver 1964 Kennedy Half Dollar was born. Replacing the 90% Silver Franklin Half Dollar.
Please Note: Congressional approval was required for any design change within 25 years of the last. The bill to authorize the Kennedy half dollar passed on December 30, 1963. Just a little over a month after his assassination. Due to the urgency of President Johnson. Due to the effect President Kennedy’s death had on our Nation.
Originally anticipating a total mintage of 91 million coins. However, by 1965 over 430 million 1964 Kennedy Half Dollars had been struck. Initially set for circulation. Instead they were purchased for hoarding. Which prompted the minting of so many. Totaling more minted coins than the Franklin Half Dollar – in it’s 16 year run!
That’s:
- Over 150,000,000 Silver troy ounces!
- Nearly 10,000,000 pounds of Silver!
- Close to 4,800 U.S. Tons of Silver!
Ripley’s! Thus, rapidly depleting the U.S. Treasury’s Silver supply.
40% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars
1965-1970 KENNEDY HALF DOLLARS -40% Silver
In addition to the depleted Treasury Silver supply, prices for silver metal were rising. So much so that by early June a dime contained $0.0933 worth of silver at market prices. On June 3, 1965, President Johnson announced plans to eliminate silver from the dime and quarter. Favoring a clad oreo with layers of copper-nickel on each side of a layer of pure copper. Congress passed the Coinage Act of 1965 in July.
Thus, the half dollar was changed from 90% silver to 40%. The new half dollars retained their silvery appearance. How? An optical illusion of sorts. The outer layer was 80% silver and 20% copper. With an inner layer of 21% silver and 79% copper.
These clad oreo half dollars were struck at the Denver Mint on December 30, 1965. Bearing the date 1965. Unchanged for U.S. coins until the coin shortage was eased. Finally on August 1, 1966, the Mint began to strike 1966-dated pieces. Thereafter resuming the normal practice of striking the current year’s date on each piece.
No More Silver Lining on the Kennedy’s
Base Metal Cladding – No more silver lining on the Kennedy Half Dollars
Despite the proclaimed end to the coin shortage, Kennedy half dollars still circulated little. A scarcity caused by continued hoarding. Plus a dip in production caused by the Treasury’s reluctance to expend more of the nation’s silver holdings on a coin which did not circulate. 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.
However, around this same time frame, former President Dwight D Eisenhower, passed away. Prompting discussions of adding his likeness to the new dollar coin. The Treasury intended the new dollar coin to be base metal clad as well. Hoping to end the coin hoarding and coin circulating to resume again. However, there was much debate on adding a President to a base metal coin. These disputes halted base metal productions of half dollars and dollars. Finally, on December 31, 1970, President Nixon signed the bill authorizing the 40% Proof Silver Eisenhower dollars, base metal circulating Eisenhower dollars, and eliminating the 40% silver content in half dollars.
Thus, Kennedy Half dollars minted in 1971 and beyond, no longer contained any silver at all.
Exceptions to Every Rule
The exception to the silver cessation was the 1976 Bicentennial coins. Issuing a special design for the reverse of the half dollar. As well as on the dollar coin and quarter. Using the 40% Silver cladding. It resumed the base metal cladding in 1977.
Face Value Coin Bag of 40% Silver Kennedy Half Dollars
Why Buy 40% Silver?
The reasons for buying 40% silver coins range as much as the reasons for buying 90% silver. Some reasons for owning and investing in 40% silver coins include:
- Practicality
Some may choose to purchase 40% silver for the very reason that each coin is not as valuable. It does not have the same density of silver in one place as 90% silver coins. Plus, if need be, it’s ratio to using as currency, if need be (i.e. case of an economic crisis), it is less out of your pocket when doing so.
- Lower Premiums than 90% Silver
40% silver coins hold a lower premium than 90% silver coins. So if you’re looking to pay very little over spot, and you have the space to store the coins, 40% is a great option.
- Key Years
Even if you’re not a collector looking only for graded or slabbed coins, there are still key years that hold more value than the average coin within the same era. If you buy a bag of random years, you might get lucky and find one that a collector is willing to pay a little bit more than melt value for.
Other Silver Coins/Rounds We Buy & Sell:
- 90% Silver Coins
- American Silver Eagles
- Canadian Silver Maple Leafs
- Austrian Silver Philharmonics
- Australian Silver Lunars
- Australian Silver Kangaroos
- South African Silver Krugerrand
- Generic Silver Rounds – any design.
About Us:
Vermillion Enterprises: Where Quality Service Meets Fair Market Prices. We are on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Like. Subscribe. Follow.
