1943 Washington Quarter
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 99,700,000 made
- Mintage
- 99,700,000
- Metal
- 90% silver, 10% copper
- Weight
- 6.25 g
- Diameter
- 24.26 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1943 Washington Quarter worth?
In worn condition it trades for about its silver content, 0.1808 troy ounces. Uncirculated coins with full luster or attractive toning sell for more.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1943 Washington Quarter rare?
- Not by date: 100 million were struck. A sharp uncirculated coin or a known variety is what makes one special.
- Is the 1943 Washington Quarter silver?
- Yes. It's 90% silver, 10% copper and holds 0.1808 troy ounces of pure silver.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1943 Washington Quarter?
- On the reverse, below the wreath. No mint mark means Philadelphia.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1943 are scarcer?
- The 1938 at 9,472,000, the 1947 at 22,556,000, the 1939 at 33,540,000, plus 5 more. So the 1943 is one of the easier dates of its stretch.
- How many 1943 Washington Quarter coins were made?
- 99,700,000.
What to check on your 1943
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Don't clean it. Cleaning leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Judge the grade under good light. Wear starts on the hair above Washington's ear and on the eagle's breast feathers.
Circulated examples are usually traded for their silver content. Pick out the best ones: original luster and attractive toning lift a coin above melt, while cleaned coins lose most of their collector value.
The story of the 1943
Philadelphia made 99,700,000 in 1943, about the same as the year before. In 1944 the figure was 105 million.
It was the big producer of the year, well ahead of 1943-D (16 million) and 1943-S (22 million).
Across Philadelphia's 64 Washington Quarter issues, the hardest to find is the 1932 with 5,404,000 made. The 1943 is on the scarcer side of the middle. Within the 1940s it's 27th smallest of 29, between the 1941 (79 million) and the 1942 (102 million).
Wartime quarters in record numbers (1941 to 1945)
World War II brought full employment and heavy coin demand. Philadelphia's output jumped from 35.7 million in 1940 to 79 million in 1941 and passed 100 million in 1942 and 1944, while Denver and San Francisco struck between about 12 and 21.7 million each year. Unlike the nickel, the quarter kept its 90 percent silver composition throughout the war.
Doubled die obverses are known for the 1942-D and 1943-S. A 1943 Philadelphia doubled die also exists. Proof quarters ended after 1942 and did not return until 1950. Most wartime quarters circulated hard and now turn up in silver lots with moderate wear. Uncirculated rolls were saved in quantity, so even the branch mint dates of these years are available in mint state.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1943
To save copper for the war effort, cents were struck in zinc-coated steel. A handful of bronze planchets left in the presses produced the famous 1943 copper cents.
How to recognize it
John Flanagan's portrait shows George Washington facing left with LIBERTY above, IN GOD WE TRUST to the left and the date below. The reverse shows an eagle standing on a bundle of arrows above two olive branches, with QUARTER DOLLAR along the bottom. The mint mark was below the wreath on the reverse until 1964 and on the obverse behind Washington's hair from 1968.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Washington Quarter (1932–1998) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1943 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 99,700,000 |
| Face value | 25¢ |
| Composition | 90% silver, 10% copper |
| Weight | 6.25 grams |
| Diameter | 24.26 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Silver content | 0.1808 troy oz (5.625 g) |
| Designer | John Flanagan |
Other 1943 Washington Quarter issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1943 Washington Quarter | 99,700,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1943-D Washington Quarter | 16,095,600 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1943-S Washington Quarter | 21,700,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
Mintage: Washington quarter mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.