1968 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1968

Mint marks returned. On the nickel, dime, quarter and half dollar they moved to the obverse. Proof coin production moved from Philadelphia to San Francisco.

How many coins were made in 1968

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 6,518,480,565 coins dated 1968 across 10 issues. That is close to the 1967 total of 7,219,079,046. In 1969 the figure rose to 7,136,669,370.

By mint: Denver 3,806,731,690 (58%, up from 1,327,377,100), Philadelphia 2,353,082,870 (36%, down from 5,077,986,946) and San Francisco 358,666,005 (5.5%, down from 813,715,000).

Those coins held about 36,522,569 troy ounces of pure silver.

1968 coins by denomination

Cents: 4,852,420,571 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Lincoln Memorial Cent, up 59% on 1967. The scarcest is the 1968-S (258,270,001) and the most plentiful the 1968-D (2,886,269,600).

Nickels: 191,623,884 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Jefferson Nickel, up 79% on 1967. The scarcest is the 1968-D (91,227,880) and the most plentiful the 1968-S (100,396,004).

Dimes: 905,218,680 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Roosevelt Dime, down 60% on 1967. The scarcest is the 1968 (424,470,400) and the most plentiful the 1968-D (480,748,280).

Quarters: 322,265,500 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Washington Quarter, down 79% on 1967. The scarcest is the 1968-D (101,534,000) and the most plentiful the 1968 (220,731,500).

Half Dollars: 246,951,930 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Kennedy Half Dollar, down 16% on 1967.

Every 1968 circulation issue at a glance

• 1968-D Jefferson Nickel: 91,227,880 struck, 51st lowest of 146 in the series, down from 1,787,297,160 in 1964.
• 1968-S Jefferson Nickel: 100,396,004 struck, 54th lowest of 146 in the series, up from 29,384,000 in 1954.
• 1968-D Washington Quarter: 101,534,000 struck, more than 54% of the series' 144 issues, down from 704,135,528 in 1964.
• 1968 Washington Quarter: 220,731,500 struck, more than 61% of the series' 144 issues, down from 1,524,031,848 in 1967.
• 1968-D Kennedy Half Dollar: 246,951,930 struck, more than 97% of the series' 116 issues, up from 156,205,446 in 1964.
• 1968-S Lincoln Memorial Cent: 258,270,001 struck, the lowest mintage of all 104 Lincoln Memorial Cent issues.
• 1968 Roosevelt Dime: 424,470,400 struck, 64th lowest of 168 in the series, down from 2,244,007,320 in 1967.
• 1968-D Roosevelt Dime: 480,748,280 struck, 70th lowest of 168 in the series, down from 1,357,517,180 in 1964.
• 1968 Lincoln Memorial Cent: 1,707,880,970 struck, 19th lowest of 104 in the series, up from 907,575,000 in 1967.
• 1968-D Lincoln Memorial Cent: 2,886,269,600 struck, 29th lowest of 104 in the series, down from 3,799,071,500 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: Mint marks move to the obverse

When mint marks returned in 1968, they moved to the obverse, just to the right of the date. San Francisco struck circulating nickels from 1968 to 1970, then only proofs from 1971 onward. The 1971 proof nickel without an S, caused by a die that was never punched, is a major rarity, with only about 1,655 reported struck.

Demand grew through the 1970s with inflation. Output at the two main mints sometimes exceeded half a billion. Proofs from 1979 show Filled S and Clear S varieties. The clear S is scarcer. Coins from these years are common, though full steps examples from some Denver dates are hard to find. Many circulated pieces show weak strikes on the steps and on Jefferson's hair, the first places to check.

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Roosevelt Dime: Mint marks move above the date

In 1968 the mint mark moved to the obverse just above the date. San Francisco began striking proof dimes for collectors the same year. A few proof dies left the Mint without the S, creating the rare no-S proofs dated 1968, 1970, 1975 and 1983. The 1975 is one of the great modern rarities with only two examples known. Proof sets of 1979 and 1981 show two mint mark styles: a filled Type 1 S and a clearer Type 2 S that is scarcer.

Philadelphia added a P mint mark to the dime in 1980. Two years later a Philadelphia die missing its P reached circulation. The 1982 no-P dime became one of the most popular modern errors. Business strike mintages stayed in the hundreds of millions per mint and passed one billion at Philadelphia in 1988. Dimes from these years turn up in change constantly. Only well-struck uncirculated pieces, proof varieties and errors draw real collector interest.

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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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