Why didn't the mint make 40% silver dimes and quarters in 1965?

Why didn't the mint make 40% silver dimes and quarters in 1965 or why didn't they make a copper nickel clad half dollar in 1965?

 

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I think it had something to do with the Coinage Act of 1965.

I read somewhere that the silver-producing states would only vote for the bill if the U.S. Mint continued to use at least *some* silver in *some* of the coins (i.e., 50-cent piece). Can't find proof of that at the moment, though.

 

Likely much to do with the assassination of the President at the time. Might have been looked at as disrespectful to discontinue his legacy w/o silver. Now? Nobody cares much anymore (about anything seemingly).

 

Makes you wonder if the Franklin half dollar was still around in 1965 would it be 40% silver or copper nickel clad?

 

Would have likely been clad in my opinion.

 

The 40% silver clad half was a political sop thrown to the silver producing western states in order to get their support for the copper nickel clad coinage. The mint wanted to eliminate silver entirely from all the coins but the western states senators let it be known that they wouldn't agree to vote for it. So the compromise was made to keep the largest coin, the half dollar still partially silver. That got the votes they needed to pass the coinage act. A second sop was the agreement to mint 45 million 90% silver dollar coins (what would have been the 1964 Peace dollars) That agreement was later reneged on when it became clear that coins would have been produced at a loss and would have immediately gone straight into collectors hands and/or the melting pot. In the middle of a coin shortage it made no sense to coin 45 million dollar coins that would never circulate when the economy needed more small coins.

It would have been 40% silver clad. The 40% silver clad decision had nothing to do with who was on the coin, just the fact that it was the largest and would require the most silver from the western states

 

Read the law... didn't know that they COULD have continued minting 900 fine until the Sec Treas certified there were enough clads OR 5 years passed.

 

The stockpile was dwindling rapidly. Switching to 40% would only slow the rate of loss for a few years because mintages would have had to soar. By the early '70's they'd be in the exact same fix and the stockpile would be gone.

 

They were still minting 90% silver Dimes & Quarters dated 1964 in 1965 & 1966. The Coinage Act of 1965 stipulated that any 90% silver coins had to be dated 1964, irrespective of when they were struck. As an example, the 1964-D Peace Dollars were struck in May 1965.