Mint bicentennial dollars are much less common in high quality than the trial coated coins that are common in PF69. Specially produced by the US Mint with mirrored surfaces and sold to collectors, sample coins usually cost only a small premium.
Some Eisenhower dollars, those made between 1971 and 1976, are partly made of silver. Their compositions contain 40% silver. The rest of the coin contains an alloy of copper and nickel. Eisenhower dollars were the last coins in the United States to be minted with silver.
The last of the big dollar coins, the many Ike dollars, can be expensive, especially the collectible versions of the Brilliant Uncirculated, minted in 40% silver. Affected by the San Francisco Mint, these low-grade aiki were the first dollars to contain silver since 1935.
More recent dollar-denominated coins (starting with the Eisenhower dollars in 1971) are more accurately referred to as “Ike dollars.” With the exception of a few pieces minted for the Brown Box and Blue Envelope collectible coins, Mint and Trial Set, which contain 40% silver, regular Eisenhower dollars contain no silver.
The Design Specifications of the Eisenhower Dollars
While the Eisenhower Dollars issued for circulation were minted from a copper-nickel alloy, these coins were produced from a 40% silver alloy and sold directly to collectors. The Eisenhower Dollars minted for circulation were made from a copper-nickel-plated compound, while special silver-copper-plated dollars containing 0.3161 ounces of silver were released for sale to collectors.
Although all regular Eisenhower Dollars were copper-nickel-plated, in 1971 and 1972 all evidence was minted as 40% silver numismatic specimens that were sold individually in brown boxes. From 1971 to 1976, the mint issued special 40% silver Proof coins for collectors.
The Mint also produced special uncirculated mints with a silver content of 40%. They were distributed in blue envelopes and the coin in a soft plastic bag. Brilliant Uncirculated Coins were sold individually in tiled boxes in blue envelopes, while the Proof versions were sold in GSA-style “plates” in a brown cardboard box. The coins in circulation were minted with 91.67% copper and 8.33% nickel, while collectible versions of the coin contained 40% silver.
The Eisenhower Silver Dollar issued in 1971 was the first silver dollar coin issued by the American Mint after the World Silver Dollar Series in 1935. Three American mints produced Eisenhower silver dollars minted from 1971 to 1978, but only two mints issued these coins in general circulation. However, from 1971 to 1976, the San Francisco Mint produced 40% of Eisenhower silver dollars for collectors. In 1971, the Mint issued Eisenhower dollars decorated with copper and silver.
President Johnson and the Mint Act
On July 23, 1965, President Johnson passed the Mint Act of 1965, which removed silver from circulating coins and authorized the use of coated coins to make half-dollars, 25 cents, and cents. The following year, the Minting Act of 1965 would abolish the silver content in most U.S. coins in circulation and ban the minting of silver dollars for five years. Then, former President Eisenhower died on March 28, 1969.
As the price of silver rose at that time and 40% of the Kennedy silver produced since 1965 became expensive, a bill was introduced to issue Eisenhower dollars without silver.
Although the bill was successfully passed, disagreements arose between Republicans and Democrats over whether to make the coin from silver or from base metals (copper-nickel). This proved to be a point of contention for Congress, with several members of Congress arguing that issuing a new one dollar coin from a copper-nickel alloy instead of silver would be a disgrace to Eisenhower’s memory.
All Eisenhower Dollars issued for general circulation will be minted from a copper-nickel alloy, while the Mint will also sell special 40% silver dollar coins to collectors for a small premium. Although the Eisenhower Silver Dollars were in little circulation, they were quite popular in Nevada casinos in the early 1970s for use as a replacement for privately issued tokens.
The Change in Eisenhower Dollars
They contained silver only in 1971-1976, and as I said, only in certain variants. Between 1965 and 1976, the two main American coins contained 40% silver. The term “40% silver” is a shortcut for investors, collectors and buyers, and can be used for Kennedy half-dollars minted in 1965-1970 and 1976 and Eisenhower silver dollars minted in 1971-1974 and 1976. The 1974 Eisenhower Cup Bicentennial Silver Dollar is the second most popular 40% coin type.
All 1794 silver dollars are slightly minted in the lower left side of the obverse and the corresponding portion of the reverse due to the fact that the edges of the dies are not aligned parallel to each other.
The last two coins to challenge the transition to cupronickel, which is now used in all US currencies in circulation, were the Kennedy Half Dollars and the Eisenhower Silver Dollars. While the Brilliant Uncirculated and Proof Eisenhower silver dollar coins were produced to high standards and sold in blue envelopes and brown boxes, respectively, coated coins were not successful, prompting some collectors to buy rolls in search of higher quality coins.
Due to the large number of coated dollars issued in 1971 and 1972 (over 100 million and 150 million minted respectively), there was no need for coins in 1973 and these were the first Eisenhower dollars issued exclusively in mints.
The Orders for Silver Eisenhower Dollars
Orders for 40% silver numismatic versions of the coin were first accepted on July 1, 1971, with execution in early August. While all Ike’s intended for general circulation were minted from a copper-nickel alloy, the US Mint also minted several mintmarked S coins (made at the San Francisco Mint) for collectors in 40% silver (each which contains 1/3 ounce of pure silver).
Each of the 1971-1974 Ikes coins are available in their own “blue bag” issued by the mint, the so-called “blue bag”, the so-called “blue bag” and a plastic token sealed in cellophane and packed in a blue envelope.
This series is the only major dollar coin to be minted with a copper-nickel finish, although numismatic versions of the coin have also been minted in silver. The new one dollar coin will have the same diameter and roughly the same thickness as the previous silver dollars, but the composition will be a copper-nickel-plated base metal composition prescribed by the Coinage Act of July 23, 1965 …
In the end, a one US dollar coin, minted from 1971 to 1978, revealed his face and became the first coin of this denomination issued by the Mint since the last series of peace dollars in 1935. Quarter dollar 40% silver was created for the US Bicentennial, but was only available in Mint or Proof kits; he was never in mass circulation.
