Silver Franklin Mint Overview
Well-struck uncirculated pieces showing full bell lines on the Liberty Bell demand a substantial premium over well circulated coins. Coins minted in Philadelphia during 1955 may have an error called the ‘Bugs Bunny’ due to the appearance of buck teeth on Franklin. A double die coin also appeared in 1961 proofs.
Engraver John R Sinnock designed the Franklin Half Dollar in the early Forties. He also designed the Roosevelt Dime. His initials appear just below the bust of Benjamin Franklin on the face of the Franklin Half Dollar.
Approximately 482 Million Silver Franklin Half Dollars were minted between 1948 – 1963. Many times less than the Silver Morgan Dollar at approximately 650 million! Millions of Franklin Halves were melted from 1964 – 1968 leaving fewer for collectors.
Based on the graph below one can easily see that certain years have far fewer Franklin half dollars than other years and that some mints were more active than others. Also a huge spike of mintage occurred in 1963 when it was announced that the Franklin Half Dollar was being replaced early by the JFK half dollar. At the time many collectors heralded it’s demise only to see a resurgence of popularity and scarcity in the coming years for this highly collectible coin.
The Denver mint struck the bulk of the Franklin half dollars due primarily because it was nearby the silver mines in Colorado. Franklin halves struck in the San Francisco mint are sought after by many collectors due to the limited numbers of Franklins and high quality strike of the San Francisco mint.