I remember using silver 5 DM and 10 DM coins in Germany back in 1993, silver melt on them was less than face value. In Paris twenty years ago you could find silver 100 FF coins worth about $17 face, but the melt value was only about $8 or so.
In memory of my kitty Seryozha 14.2.1996 ~ 13.9.2016 and Shadow 3.4.2015 - 16.4.21
I remember getting Silver Dollars from the bank to look for dates that I needed. I took the rest back to the bank. Got a complete set of Roosevelt Dimes , complete set of Franklin Halves and a complete set of Washington Quarters except for 1932 D and S from circulation.
Yep. All US dimes, quarters, halves, and dollars were silver when I was growing up. Mostly Roosevelt's, Washington's, and Franklin's, but occasionally the till in my parent's restaurant would contain a Mercury dime, Standing Lib. quarter, and/or Walker half.
I never thought that growing old would happen so fast. - Jim
Yes, in the late 1950s I would go to the bank and get silver dollars. Then in college (1964-1968) I would retain silver coins and even go to the bank and get rolls of quarters to remove the silver coins. I continued to always check dimes and quarters. 90% halves had disappeared.
I did my sophomore high school science project on the difference between the discontinued silver coins and the new clad coins in 1970 or 1971. It was based on a Coin World article called "How Bad Clad?", which was the title of my project. I won 2nd place in junior chemistry. I had been collecting coins since about 7th grade, & routinely found silver, usually more than I could afford to keep! Then I got a car......................., & discovered girls! No more coin collecting for 35 years!
@nags said:
That was before my time... When the transition was made, what was the approximate melt value of the silver coins relative to the face value? At what point what there enough of a spread to have non-coin people start plucking the silver from circulation?
For a long time the melt value was not much over the face value, initially just a few cents on the dollar, but a lot of people figured "they're going to be worth a lot of money someday!" My mother was one of those people, and because my Dad handled a lot of change on his job they were able to put aside a little over $1,000 face in 90% silver before it finally disappeared. My (distant) future father-in-law did as well.
Both my parents and my first wife's parents were Depression era adolescents, and they knew what hard times were. They saved that silver as a fall-back resource until they died in the 2000's. My Ma said that she slept better knowing it was there.
Numismatist. 50 year member ANA. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner numerous NLG Literary Awards.
I was born in 61 and my older brother got me interested in coin collecting when I was about 7 or 8 years old. There was still a little bit of silver in circulation and I tried to keep any I could find. But then when the Hunt Brothers manipulated up the price of silver I ended up selling it all for $10 for every $1 in face value. I was in college but was in summer break, I had plenty of spending money for all summer from selling the silver coins at that price. I don’t really regret it, it took a long time for silver to get up to that price again and none of the silver coins were key dates or high grade.
Absolutely remember silver coins in circulation... Except silver dollars... But I could still go to the bank and get them for a paper dollar. But a dollar was a lot of money to me back then.
I was born two years after the last 90% silver coinage was made. By the time I was old enough to spend money; it was all clad. But, I DO remember my father having a HUGE, plastic, piggy bank shaped like a liquor bottle, which was complete with a label. It was filled with silver coins that he had pulled from circulation. He and I cashed it in, when silver hit almost 50 bucks an ounce. I bought some certified coins with my share.
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
Oh, yes. I was in the 10th grade when the Coinage Act of 1965 was passed. I was pulling silver out of circulation in some quantity in the late 1960s.
I got a lot silver dollars from the bank in the early 1960s
Retired dealer and avid collector of U.S. type coins, 19th century presidential campaign medalets and selected medals. In recent years I have been working on a set of British coins - at least one coin from each king or queen who issued pieces that are collectible. I am also collecting at least one coin for each Roman emperor from Julius Caesar to ... ?
Started my first paper route in 1957 or 1958, all the dimes, quarters and halves were silver. All the Lincolns were wheat backs, I found all but a 14-D, 22 plain and 55 DDO in circulation. I filled many blue Whitman folders back then. An occasional Barber or Standing Liberty Quarter would even show up. Silver Dollars could be replaced with paper dollars at the bank so they were the first to go if I needed money for a large purchase or a date in the early 1960s.
it's crackers to slip a rozzer the dropsy in snide
The last silver dollar I got from circulation was around 1971. My brother worked at a burger joint. Someone paid for their meal with a silver dollar which he brought home for me.
@hatchet said:
The last silver dollar I got from circulation was around 1971. My brother worked at a burger joint. Someone paid for their meal with a silver dollar which he brought home for me.
I saw my last silver dollar in circulation about that time. It was a Peace Dollar, but it had a nasty gash in the obverse rim. It was a bullion only piece. It won’t have any numismatic value today.
Retired dealer and avid collector of U.S. type coins, 19th century presidential campaign medalets and selected medals. In recent years I have been working on a set of British coins - at least one coin from each king or queen who issued pieces that are collectible. I am also collecting at least one coin for each Roman emperor from Julius Caesar to ... ?
I really don't remember because I was never looking for silver in pre 1964.
I started working for a grocery store in 1972 and that's when the journey started, I was looking for silver coins every day !
Well........shortly after posting this we had a wicked thunderstorm go thru leaving us without power for over two full days. I am getting too old for that crap. There were hundreds of thousands who lost power over three states and 2 lives lost from falling trees, so our little inconvenience seems pretty trivial.
But I enjoyed all the stories about getting and saving or spending silver. I guess I am not the only one that would have more silver now except for spending them on candy and ice cream. I never grew up and still have the sweet tooth. Also good to hear that many people are collectors now even if they were too young to see silver common in change. That makes sense because I never saw a 2,000+ year old Greek coin in circulation but I still collected a few.
Thank you all for the responses.
Successful BST deals with mustangt and jesbroken. Now EVERYTHING is for sale.
Growing up in Philadelphia I had a neighbor who collected coins. In 1962 and 1963 he told us neighborhood kids to save every silver coin we could get our hands on. He once gave me a Morgan silver dollar. The rumor on the block was he had gone to the bank in the mid fifties to buy a few rolls of pennies. Turned out one roll was all 1955 double dies! He went back and got a few more rolls - same story. He built a tremendous collection from that good fortune. After he died the collection was broken up and sold as his son did not have an interest in coins. Looking back, he definitely influenced me to become a collector. Great time and place to grow up in.
Yes. I started collecting in 1963, still have my Lincoln, Buffalo, and Merc Whitman folder collections from circulation. The neighborhood grocery store manager let me go through change for the leftovers after he cherried the better dates. I could not find any more Mercs that I needed after 1965, they were getting sparse at that point. Good fun, and it sparked my interest in coins. It seemed like a lot of people were doing this, easy money while it lasted.
Robert Scot: Engraving Liberty - biography of US Mint's first chief engraver
Comments
Nope, but if I did, I wish I was buying all the gold I could at the time!
I remember using silver 5 DM and 10 DM coins in Germany back in 1993, silver melt on them was less than face value. In Paris twenty years ago you could find silver 100 FF coins worth about $17 face, but the melt value was only about $8 or so.
I remember getting Silver Dollars from the bank to look for dates that I needed. I took the rest back to the bank. Got a complete set of Roosevelt Dimes , complete set of Franklin Halves and a complete set of Washington Quarters except for 1932 D and S from circulation.
Yep. All US dimes, quarters, halves, and dollars were silver when I was growing up. Mostly Roosevelt's, Washington's, and Franklin's, but occasionally the till in my parent's restaurant would contain a Mercury dime, Standing Lib. quarter, and/or Walker half.
- Jim
Yes, in the late 1950s I would go to the bank and get silver dollars. Then in college (1964-1968) I would retain silver coins and even go to the bank and get rolls of quarters to remove the silver coins. I continued to always check dimes and quarters. 90% halves had disappeared.
I did my sophomore high school science project on the difference between the discontinued silver coins and the new clad coins in 1970 or 1971. It was based on a Coin World article called "How Bad Clad?", which was the title of my project. I won 2nd place in junior chemistry. I had been collecting coins since about 7th grade, & routinely found silver, usually more than I could afford to keep! Then I got a car......................., & discovered girls! No more coin collecting for 35 years!
Wayne
www.waynedriskillminiatures.com
For a long time the melt value was not much over the face value, initially just a few cents on the dollar, but a lot of people figured "they're going to be worth a lot of money someday!" My mother was one of those people, and because my Dad handled a lot of change on his job they were able to put aside a little over $1,000 face in 90% silver before it finally disappeared. My (distant) future father-in-law did as well.
Both my parents and my first wife's parents were Depression era adolescents, and they knew what hard times were. They saved that silver as a fall-back resource until they died in the 2000's. My Ma said that she slept better knowing it was there.
I was born in 61 and my older brother got me interested in coin collecting when I was about 7 or 8 years old. There was still a little bit of silver in circulation and I tried to keep any I could find. But then when the Hunt Brothers manipulated up the price of silver I ended up selling it all for $10 for every $1 in face value. I was in college but was in summer break, I had plenty of spending money for all summer from selling the silver coins at that price. I don’t really regret it, it took a long time for silver to get up to that price again and none of the silver coins were key dates or high grade.
Mr_Spud
Absolutely remember silver coins in circulation... Except silver dollars... But I could still go to the bank and get them for a paper dollar. But a dollar was a lot of money to me back then.
I feel gypped I was NOT born early enough to enjoy silver circulation.
I was born two years after the last 90% silver coinage was made. By the time I was old enough to spend money; it was all clad. But, I DO remember my father having a HUGE, plastic, piggy bank shaped like a liquor bottle, which was complete with a label. It was filled with silver coins that he had pulled from circulation. He and I cashed it in, when silver hit almost 50 bucks an ounce. I bought some certified coins with my share.
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947)
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
Don’t wish your life away.
Oh, yes. I was in the 10th grade when the Coinage Act of 1965 was passed. I was pulling silver out of circulation in some quantity in the late 1960s.
I got a lot silver dollars from the bank in the early 1960s
It don't seem like all that long ago 😖
Started my first paper route in 1957 or 1958, all the dimes, quarters and halves were silver. All the Lincolns were wheat backs, I found all but a 14-D, 22 plain and 55 DDO in circulation. I filled many blue Whitman folders back then. An occasional Barber or Standing Liberty Quarter would even show up. Silver Dollars could be replaced with paper dollars at the bank so they were the first to go if I needed money for a large purchase or a date in the early 1960s.
it's crackers to slip a rozzer the dropsy in snide
The last silver dollar I got from circulation was around 1971. My brother worked at a burger joint. Someone paid for their meal with a silver dollar which he brought home for me.
Great story.
I saw my last silver dollar in circulation about that time. It was a Peace Dollar, but it had a nasty gash in the obverse rim. It was a bullion only piece. It won’t have any numismatic value today.
I really don't remember because I was never looking for silver in pre 1964.
I started working for a grocery store in 1972 and that's when the journey started, I was looking for silver coins every day !
Well........shortly after posting this we had a wicked thunderstorm go thru leaving us without power for over two full days. I am getting too old for that crap. There were hundreds of thousands who lost power over three states and 2 lives lost from falling trees, so our little inconvenience seems pretty trivial.
But I enjoyed all the stories about getting and saving or spending silver. I guess I am not the only one that would have more silver now except for spending them on candy and ice cream. I never grew up and still have the sweet tooth. Also good to hear that many people are collectors now even if they were too young to see silver common in change. That makes sense because I never saw a 2,000+ year old Greek coin in circulation but I still collected a few.
Thank you all for the responses.
Successful BST deals with mustangt and jesbroken. Now EVERYTHING is for sale.
Growing up in Philadelphia I had a neighbor who collected coins. In 1962 and 1963 he told us neighborhood kids to save every silver coin we could get our hands on. He once gave me a Morgan silver dollar. The rumor on the block was he had gone to the bank in the mid fifties to buy a few rolls of pennies. Turned out one roll was all 1955 double dies! He went back and got a few more rolls - same story. He built a tremendous collection from that good fortune. After he died the collection was broken up and sold as his son did not have an interest in coins. Looking back, he definitely influenced me to become a collector. Great time and place to grow up in.
Yes. I started collecting in 1963, still have my Lincoln, Buffalo, and Merc Whitman folder collections from circulation. The neighborhood grocery store manager let me go through change for the leftovers after he cherried the better dates. I could not find any more Mercs that I needed after 1965, they were getting sparse at that point. Good fun, and it sparked my interest in coins. It seemed like a lot of people were doing this, easy money while it lasted.