‘Common’ Roosevelt Dime Deserves a Little Respect

Nothing, absolutely nothing, could be more common than a 1962 Roosevelt dime – at least, this is the thinking of large numbers of collectors and literally everyone who invests in rare coins.

The Roosevelt dime set is somewhat unusual, in that there is literally no such thing as a tough-date Roosevelt dime. Since it’s initial production in 1946, the Roosevelt dime has been produced in substantial numbers. It’s a modern coin with modern levels of production. Even the few better-date Roosevelt dimes had production levels of 12-13 million pieces, with no Roosevelt dime intended for circulation having a mintage below 10 million pieces – hardly the sort of mintages that yield substantial collector attention.

In fact, after 1955, when Philadelphia produced 12,450,181, Denver 13,959,000 and San Francisco some 18,510,000 dimes, most Roosevelt dimes are considered not worth anyone’s time. Even the low-mintage 1955-dated coins were heavily saved, as it was thought that would be the final year of coin production at San Francisco. With the historic San Francisco branch mint shutting down, many people hoarded 1955 dates. The comparatively low mintages enhanced that notion.

After 1955, however, mintages were large. In 1961, Denver alone produced nearly 210 million Roosevelt dimes. That was a mind-boggling mintage.

Only a few years later, the Roosevelt dime saw its first billion-coin mintages. Collectors simply could not take coins with such production levels seriously. The 1916-D Mercury dime, with a mintage of just 264,000, when compared to the 929,360,000 1964 Philadelphia Roosevelt dimes, seems perilously close to unique. Collectors were still hoping to find a circulating 1916-D in 1962, even though it was almost impossible – they would certainly not bother with dates from the 1960s. In fact, the 1962 dime is not rare. It is not even scarce or tough. Its mintage was 72,450,000, and that is certainly a large number of dimes.

If, however, the 1962 dime is viewed in the context of dime mintages since 1962, it takes on a slightly different complexion. That 72,450,000 mintage is huge in comparison to the 1916-D, but with a mintage below 100 million, it is the lowest business-strike mintage since 1962 of all Roosevelt dimes intended for circulation. That fact starts to stand out when you scan the mintages of more recent Roosevelt dimes.

Moreover, that 1962 mintage is certainly deceptive in terms of survival rate. Realistically, the survival rate of coins, not their mintages, is most important in determining market values. Virtually all 1950-D Jefferson nickels survived, so while it’s a low-mintage Jefferson nickel, its price in upper grades is not high. There are coins that had solid mintages that were almost totally destroyed before ever being released. These are now great rarities.

In the case of the 1962 and other early 1960s coins, while production levels may have been high, the survival rates are low. The reason was the rise in the price of silver.

For some it might be hard to remember, but as silver rose to ever-higher levels before peaking at around $50 an ounce, a common Roosevelt dime such as the 1962 was worth first a dollar, then two and then more. There was simply no reason to save a 1962 dime, or, for that matter, any silver Roosevelt dime. Millions were destroyed for their silver content. Certainly, the 1962 was one of the heavily destroyed dates.

While it would be wrong to think that the 1962 dime will someday be viewed as similar to the 1916-D Mercury dime, or even some better-date Roosevelt dimes, it would not be wrong to think the 1962 Roosevelt dime might gain a little respect in years ahead.