Who is on Half Dollar Coin?

Until 1948 no real person had appeared on the fifty-cent coin or half dollar. That was in keeping with a longstanding tradition in American coinage that began when the United States Mint was founded in 1792 in which the obverse of each coin was required to feature an allegorical depiction of Liberty as a female.

The decision was made back then to do that because the new American Republic and George Washington in particular wanted to break with the tradition in monarchies like the British one we got our independence from of depicting their kings and queens on coins.

Who is on the 50 Cent Coin: Franklin

By the early 20^th century this began to change especially in 1909 when the Lincoln cent debuted; in 1932 and 1938 when the Washington quarter and Jefferson nickel were launched; and finally in 1948 when the Roosevelt dime began.

But it was only a little later in 1948 that the first person appeared on a half dollar, and he was not a president. It took much longer to put a person on this coin because the lower denominations were the workhorse coins of commerce while half dollars did not circulate a lot and tended to be saved by collectors.

Nellie Taylor Ross, who became the first woman appointed to be Director of the U.S. Mint in 1933 and served for 20 years. It was under her tenure that our circulating coinage shifted to consisting entirely of coins with designs of presidents or prominent Americans.

Ross was a great admirer of founding father and polymath Benjamin Franklin, who was everything from a statesman, diplomat, scientist and inventor to a printer, freemason and the first postmaster general.

She had long wanted to see coins issued for this great man and initially tried to have him appear on the nickel, which in 1942 saw a change to its composition because copper and nickel were needed for the war.

Ross had Chief Engraver John Sinnock prepare designs for a new silver half dime that would be a temporary replacement for the Jefferson nickel, but that plan was killed when the nickel’s composition was changed.

Instead, she had Sinnock prepare an obverse design for a new half dollar based on a right-facing bust of Franklin he developed for a 1933 medal that was proposed in 1942 for the nickel, while the reverse would feature the Liberty bell in Philadelphia that appeared on the 1926 commemorative half dollar for the Sesquicentennial of American Independence along with a small eagle on the right.

Business strikes were issued every year and proofs were struck from 1950 to 1963. Mint state coins were produced each year at the Philadelphia Mint; at the Denver Mint every year except 1955 and 1956; and at the San Francisco Mint where they were only made in 1949 and 1951-1954. The total set includes 29 coins.

Be sure to check out our full selection of ungraded and graded  Franklins.

Who is on the 50 Cent Coin: Kennedy

The assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963 was a huge shock to the American nation and the world not only because it is rare for an American President to be assassinated but also because Kennedy was widely admired.

Following the enormous outpouring of national grief for the slain leader, the Johnson administration quickly put into effect plans for a circulating coin honoring JFK.

Mint Director Ava Adams called U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Gilroy Roberts the very same day JFK died to say plans were being considered to put Kennedy on a coin. The coin could be either a silver quarter, half dollar or dollar. Mrs. Kennedy’s preference was for it to be a half dollar, so they worked to do that.

Many members of the public sent letters to the Mint asking for a Kennedy coin, which President Johnson also endorsed, and in December the Congress passed a bill authorizing the new half dollar.

To speed things up, they decided to have Gilroy Roberts make a few modifications to the design from the 1961 inaugural medal he designed as the basis for the obverse, and Frank Gasparro’s heraldic eagle that was on the reverse of a 1961 medal he created, so that dies could be made quickly.

The 1964 Kennedy Half Dollar, made of 90% silver and 10% copper for that year only, were first struck in January 1964 and released into circulation in March – the shortest period ever between the death of an American leader and their appearance on a coin.

Kennedy half dollars were widely hoarded from the start as a memento of JFK, including overseas, even after production was increased, eventually reaching 273,304,004 1964 and another 156,205,446 1964-D coins.

In 1965 the coin’s alloy was changed to 40% silver because with the rise in silver prices, 90% silver coinage had a melt value equal to or greater than its face value. The Kennedy half dollar remained that way through 1970, and since 1971 it had been made like our dimes and quarters issued since 1965 of copper-nickel – with an outer core of 75% copper and 25% nickel surrounding an inner core all made of copper.

Both 90% and 40% silver Kennedy half dollars could still be found in change or obtained at banks for many years after they were issued, but that rarely happens now. And although the coins are still struck in clad, since 2002 they have no longer been made for circulation and are only sold by the Mint in rolls, bags and annual Proof and mint sets.

Recent Developments

However, in 2021 some collectors began reporting that they were able to obtain wrapped rolls of new Kennedy halves from banks first on the West coast only and later from other banks as well. In 2022 the same thing happened again.

The Mint reported that due to a need for the coins in commerce they were for the first time in 20 years once again releasing some coins for circulation through the Federal Reserve, while also continuing to sell them at a premium in bags and rolls.

In mid-December 2023, the Mint for the first time began offering collectors of these coins the option to order two-roll P & D sets or 200-coin bags through the subscription option to ensure they obtained them rather than waiting for their scheduled release next spring.

Today, complete sets of Franklin and Kennedy halves are very popular with collectors and others collecting varieties.  

Check out all our Kennedy halves including raw and graded pieces.