The Roosevelt Dime was created to commemorate President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The coin was first issued shortly after the conclusion of World War II and less than one year after the death of the 32nd president and has been minted continuously since 1946. Following the cent, nickel, and quarter, this represented the fourth circulating denomination to change its design to that of a former president.
1946 Roosevelt Dime
Aside from the change in composition of circulating coins that occurred in 1965, the Roosevelt Dime has remained unchanged since the series’s inception. Designed by John R. Sinnock, the obverse features a left-facing portrait of the former president with the inscriptions “LIBERTY” and “IN GOD WE TRUST.” The designer’s initials “JS” also appear truncated at the neck of the portrait.
The reverse design depicts a lit torch in the center with an olive branch and oak branch at each side, surrounded by the inscriptions “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” and “ONE DIME.” The motto “E PLURIBUS UNUM” is also inscribed in a straight line across the coin, interrupted by the torch and branches.
Roosevelt Dime Notes:
No Roosevelt Dime issued for circulation has had a mintage less than 10 million.
From 1965 to 1967, Roosevelt Dimes did not carry a mint mark.
The 1950 Proof Roosevelt Dime was the first Proof Roosevelt Dime and has the lowest mintage, with a mintage of 51,386.
The coin with the highest mintage is the 1967 Roosevelt Dime with a mintage of 2,244,007,320.
On four separate instances, Proof Roosevelt Dimes struck at the San Francisco Mint were missing the “S” mint mark. These “No S” Proof Roosevelt Dimes are a rarity within the series, with the rarest being the 1975 No S Proof Roosevelt Dime, with only 2 to 5 known examples.
The 1982 No P Roosevelt Dimes was created when a Mint employee failed to add the mint mark to an obverse die. There are two different variations—one exhibiting a strong strike and another exhibiting a weaker strike. Both variations are included in the mintage for the 1982-P Roosevelt Dime.
In 2009, circulating coin production experienced a sharp decline, falling from numbers in the billions to less than 100 million from each Mint. The annual mintages rebounded in the following years, potentially making the 2009-dated coins a future key date.
