1965 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1965

The Coinage Act of 1965 replaced silver in dimes and quarters with copper-nickel clad copper and cut the half dollar to 40% silver. Mint marks were dropped from 1965 to 1967 and Special Mint Sets replaced proof sets.

How many coins were made in 1965

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 5,168,733,756 coins dated 1965 across 5 issues. That is 61% fewer than in 1964 (13,240,528,403). In 1966 the figure fell to 4,654,915,455.

By mint: Philadelphia 3,975,338,856 (77%, down from 5,239,671,589), Denver 973,364,900 (19%, down from 7,804,226,814) and San Francisco 220,030,000 (4.3%, up from 196,630,000).

Those coins held about 9,743,126 troy ounces of pure silver.

1965 coins by denomination

Cents: 1,494,864,900 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Lincoln Memorial Cent, down 77% on 1964.

Nickels: 136,131,380 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Jefferson Nickel, down 95% on 1964.

Dimes: 1,652,140,570 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Roosevelt Dime, down 28% on 1964.

Quarters: 1,819,717,540 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Washington Quarter, up 44% on 1964.

Half Dollars: 65,879,366 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Kennedy Half Dollar, down 85% on 1964.

Every 1965 circulation issue at a glance

• 1965 Kennedy Half Dollar: 65,879,366 struck, more than 86% of the series' 116 issues, down from 273,304,004 in 1964.
• 1965 Jefferson Nickel: 136,131,380 struck, 63rd lowest of 146 in the series, down from 1,024,672,000 in 1964.
• 1965 Lincoln Memorial Cent: 301,470,000 struck, 2nd lowest of 104 in the series, down from 2,451,945,000 in 1964.
• 1965 Roosevelt Dime: 1,652,140,570 struck, more than 98% of the series' 168 issues, up from 929,360,000 in 1964.
• 1965 Washington Quarter: 1,819,717,540 struck, the highest mintage of the series, up from 560,390,585 in 1964.

Lincoln Memorial Cent: No mint marks, special sets and famous doubled dies

The Coinage Act of 1965 left the cent's bronze composition unchanged, but the Mint dropped mint marks from all coins from 1965 to 1967 to discourage hoarding. Collectors were offered Special Mint Sets with satin finish coins instead of proof sets. Mint marks returned in 1968. San Francisco resumed striking cents with an S for the first time since 1955.

Several doubled dies come from this period. The 1969-S doubled die obverse is rare and widely counterfeited. The 1971 and 1972 have doubled die obverses. The 1972 is one of the most dramatic, with strong doubling on the date and LIBERTY. The 1970-S has a scarce small date variety, also called the high 7. Copper prices were rising by 1973, which pushed the Treasury to look for a cheaper metal.

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Jefferson Nickel: Coin shortage years and no mint marks

Output grew rapidly through the late 1950s and early 1960s, led by Denver, which struck more than 280 million in 1962. A nationwide coin shortage in the early 1960s, blamed on vending machines, hoarding and a booming economy, led the Mint to strike more than 2.8 billion nickels dated 1964, with production of that date continuing into 1965.

From 1965 to 1967 the Mint removed mint marks from all coins to discourage hoarding. Special Mint Sets with satin finish coins replaced proof sets. In 1966 Felix Schlag's initials, FS, were added below the bust, more than 25 years after his design first appeared. Coins from this era are abundant and rarely carry a premium unless they show full steps, a strong proof-like finish or a notable error.

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Roosevelt Dime: The clad change without mint marks

The Coinage Act of 1965 removed silver from the dime. New dimes have outer layers of 75 percent copper and 25 percent nickel bonded to a pure copper core, which shows as a copper stripe on the edge. They weigh 2.27 grams against 2.5 grams for the silver version. To discourage hoarding of the new coins, the Mint left mint marks off every dime dated 1965 through 1967.

Mintages were enormous, with more than 2.2 billion dimes dated 1967 alone. Proof sets were suspended and Special Mint Sets with a satin finish took their place in all three years. The prized error of the period is a 1965 dime struck on a leftover 90 percent silver planchet. It weighs 2.5 grams and lacks the copper stripe on its edge, so a scale settles the question quickly. Ordinary dimes from these years rarely carry a premium unless they are uncirculated with full torch bands.

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Washington Quarter: Clad quarters and the mint mark move

The 1965 quarter dropped silver for a pure copper core clad in copper-nickel, weighing 5.67 grams. No mint marks were used from 1965 through 1967 and Special Mint Sets replaced proof sets. Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco all struck circulation quarters in those years, so the mint of an individual coin cannot be identified.

From 1968 the mint mark moved to the obverse, to the right of Washington's ribbon. San Francisco took over proof production that year. Transitional errors such as 1965 quarters struck on 90 percent silver planchets are rare and are confirmed by weight. Denver struck more than 417 million quarters in 1970. The 1974 issue was the last with the eagle reverse before the bicentennial design. No quarter carries a 1975 date.

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Kennedy Half Dollar: Forty percent silver years

From 1965 to 1970 the half dollar kept some silver: outer layers of 80 percent silver bonded to a core of about 21 percent silver, for 40 percent overall. As with other denominations, no mint marks were used from 1965 to 1967 and Special Mint Sets replaced proofs. The Mint struck nearly 300 million halves dated 1967.

From 1968 the mint mark moved to the obverse above the date and San Francisco struck the proofs. Philadelphia made no business strike halves from 1968 to 1970. Halves were mostly hoarded by now. In 1970 Denver struck only 2,150,000, all sold in uncirculated sets with none released for circulation. The 1970-D is the key business strike of the series. Coins of these years have a silvery edge without a copper stripe.

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