1999 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1999

The 50 State Quarters program began, with five new reverse designs each year in the order the states joined the Union.

New this year: the 50 State Quarter.

Last year of the Susan B. Anthony Dollar.

How many coins were made in 1999

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 21,930,025,000 coins dated 1999 across 20 issues. That is 40% more than in 1998 (15,664,300,000). In 2000 the figure rose to 28,093,444,500.

No earlier year on our list comes close: it was the largest output up to that point.

By mint: Denver 11,052,401,000 (50%, up from 7,868,894,000) and Philadelphia 10,877,624,000 (50%, up from 7,795,406,000).

1999 coins by denomination

Cents: 11,597,665,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Lincoln Memorial Cent, up 13% on 1998. The scarcest is the 1999 (5,237,600,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-D (6,360,065,000).

Nickels: 2,278,720,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Jefferson Nickel, up 72% on 1998. The scarcest is the 1999-D (1,066,720,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-P (1,212,000,000).

Dimes: 3,561,750,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Roosevelt Dime, up 53% on 1998. The scarcest is the 1999-D (1,397,750,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-P (2,164,000,000).

Quarters: 4,430,940,000 struck in 10 circulation issues of the 50 State Quarter, up 158% on 1998. The scarcest is the 1999-D New Jersey Quarter (299,028,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-P Connecticut Quarter (688,744,000).

Half Dollars: 19,582,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Kennedy Half Dollar, down 36% on 1998. The scarcest is the 1999-P (8,900,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-D (10,682,000).

Dollar Coins: 41,368,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Susan B. Anthony Dollar. The scarcest is the 1999-D (11,776,000) and the most plentiful the 1999-P (29,592,000).

Every 1999 circulation issue at a glance

• 1999-P Kennedy Half Dollar: 8,900,000 struck, 46th lowest of 116 in the series, down from 15,646,000 in 1998.
• 1999-D Kennedy Half Dollar: 10,682,000 struck, 47th lowest of 116 in the series, down from 15,064,000 in 1998.
• 1999-D Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 11,776,000 struck, 4th lowest of 11 in the series, up from 3,250,000 in 1981.
• 1999-P Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 29,592,000 struck, more than 60% of the series' 11 issues, up from 3,000,000 in 1981.
• 1999-D New Jersey Quarter: 299,028,000 struck, more than 55% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-P Pennsylvania Quarter: 349,000,000 struck, more than 63% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-D Pennsylvania Quarter: 358,332,000 struck, more than 66% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-P New Jersey Quarter: 363,200,000 struck, more than 71% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-P Delaware Quarter: 373,400,000 struck, more than 74% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-D Delaware Quarter: 401,424,000 struck, more than 75% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-P Georgia Quarter: 451,188,000 struck, more than 83% of the series' 100 issues.
• 1999-D Georgia Quarter: 488,744,000 struck, more than 85% of the series' 100 issues.

The 8 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Lincoln Memorial Cent: Close AM, Wide AM and the 1995 doubled die

From 1993 circulating cents were made with the Close AM reverse while proofs used the Wide AM style. A few business strike cents from 1998, 1999 and 2000 were struck with the Wide AM proof reverse. These are scarce varieties worth checking with a magnifier. The 1999 Wide AM is the rarest of the three.

The 1995 doubled die obverse, with clear doubling on LIBERTY and IN GOD WE TRUST, was found in large numbers in circulation and is the best known variety of this period. Output stayed huge. Denver struck more than 8.7 billion coins in 2000, the highest annual figure in that mint's history. Uncirculated red coins are abundant, but plating flaws and spots keep the very top grades scarce.

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Jefferson Nickel: Matte finishes and the final original Monticello years

Special matte finish nickels were made for collector sets in 1994 and 1997. The 1994-P came in a Jefferson coin and currency set marking his 250th birthday, while the 1997-P came in a set honoring the U.S. Botanic Garden. The 1997-P matte is scarce, with only about 25,000 made. Output climbed past a billion at each mint in 1999. Denver struck 1.5 billion in 2000.

Demand eased after 2000. Production fell to about 440 million at Philadelphia and 383 million at Denver in 2003, the last year of the original Schlag design before the Westward Journey series. Coins from these years are abundant. Full steps examples are generally easier to find than for earlier dates. San Francisco proofs show deep mirrors with frosted designs.

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Roosevelt Dime: Silver proofs and the 1996-W

Silver proof sets returned in 1992, so collectors could once more buy proof dimes struck in 90 percent silver at San Francisco alongside the clad proofs. In 1996 the Mint marked the dime's 50th anniversary by placing a West Point dime with a W mint mark in each uncirculated set. About 1.46 million were made, the lowest mintage dime of the 1990s apart from the proofs.

Circulation demand peaked in 1999, when Philadelphia alone struck more than 2.1 billion dimes. From 2005 the dimes in uncirculated sets carried a satin finish that sets them apart from business strikes, a detail worth checking when sorting coins removed from sets. Dimes of this era found in pocket change are usually lightly worn clad pieces with their outer layers intact. Proof dimes from both the clad and silver sets of these years survive in large numbers.

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Kennedy Half Dollar: Eagle reverse and dwindling demand

The eagle reverse returned in 1977. Halves saw little use in commerce and mintages fell into the tens of millions, then lower. The 1982 Philadelphia issue includes a variety missing Gasparro's FG initials from the reverse. In 1987 no halves were made for circulation; the 2,890,758 coins from each mint went only into uncirculated sets.

Silver proofs in 90 percent silver returned in 1992. A 1998-S matte finish silver half, 64,141 struck, was sold in a set honoring Robert F. Kennedy and is one of the scarcest modern Kennedys. Circulation strikes of this period often show bag marks from handling in large bags. Well-preserved examples of the low mintage dates, such as 1987, are worth seeking. The 1999 Philadelphia run of 8.9 million was also small.

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Susan B. Anthony Dollar: The long gap and the 1999 encore

No Anthony dollars were struck from 1982 through 1998. The Treasury still held huge stocks from 1979 and 1980. Those coins slowly found work in vending machines, transit fare systems and postal stamp machines, where a dollar coin made more sense than a paper bill. By 1999 that demand had nearly emptied the vaults and the new Sacagawea dollar was not due until 2000.

The Mint struck one last run in 1999: 29,592,000 at Philadelphia and 11,776,000 at Denver, for 41,368,000 in all. San Francisco made none for circulation. The Mint also sold two-coin uncirculated sets with a P and a D dollar and a separate 1999-P proof in its own box with a certificate of authenticity. That proof was struck at Philadelphia with a P mint mark and was not part of the regular 1999 proof set, whose other coins carried an S.

The 1999 coins look just like the earlier dollars, with the same eleven-sided inner border and the Apollo 11 reverse. They were the last coins of the design. The gold-colored Sacagawea dollar that followed was the same size with a plain edge. A very small number of 1999 Anthony dollars were struck by mistake on the golden planchets meant for the new coin; these errors are rare and should be authenticated. Ordinary 1999 dollars are common and trade at face value or a small premium.

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