Silver Coins In Circulation

Wouldn’t it be great to know how many silver coins are still in circulation?  I read in Alan Herbert’s Coin Clinic column in Numismatic News, that in 1965 it is estimated that there were 12 billion silver coins in circulation.  I wonder how many of those 12 billion silver coins are still circulating.

I read on the CoinTalk forum all the time about coin collectors that like to search coin rolls for silver coins.  Some like to search through half dollar rolls looking for silver Kennedy half dollars, or through dime and quarter rolls looking for silver roosevelt dimes and and silver Washington quarters.  I am not sure that I have the patience for that, but it is a pretty cool hobby for those who love the thrill of the hunt.

Some might wonder why I stressed the number of silver coins in circulation in 1965.  The reaons that 1965 is significant is that is the year the United States Mint switched from silver US coins to clad US coins.

I guess we will never know for sure how many silver coins are still in circulation.  But, it sure would be interesting to know.

Leave a Reply

CyberCoder Tag Theme by CyberCoder - WordPress Powers Coin Blogger