Half Dollar Hunting: Why CRH Veterans Love Halves

Ask experienced coin roll hunters which denomination they'd pick if they could only search one, and a lot of them will say half dollars. Halves cost more to search per box, but they're where silver shows up most often. Here's why, what to look for, and how to get boxes without wearing out your welcome at the bank.

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Why silver still turns up in halves

Half dollars have barely circulated for decades. People treated them as keepsakes, so they ended up in drawers, coffee cans, and safe deposit boxes. When those collections get cashed in (an estate cleanout, a garage find, someone who just wants the face value), they go back to a bank and into rolls.

That's the big difference from dimes and quarters. Old silver dimes have mostly been picked out of everyday change, but halves come back in bunches, straight from someone's stash.

Another wrinkle: from 2002 to 2020 the Mint made Kennedy halves only for collectors, not for general circulation. In 2021 it started striking them for circulation again. So the halves in bank boxes are a mix of recent coins, older clad coins, and whatever came out of someone's hoard.

What to look for

1. 1964 Kennedy halves (90% silver). The first year of the Kennedy design was struck in 90% silver, 10% copper. It weighs 12.50 g. Always keep it.

2. Franklin (1948 to 1963) and Walking Liberty (1916 to 1947) halves. All 90% silver. Less common in rolls than 1964 Kennedys, but they do appear, especially in customer-wrapped rolls.

3. 1965 to 1970 Kennedy halves (40% silver). These have a silver-clad layer over a copper-silver core and weigh 11.50 g, compared with 11.34 g for modern clad halves. On the edge, a 40% half shows a faint grayish stripe instead of the bright copper stripe of a clad coin. A 1970-D was only issued in mint sets, so it's rare in rolls and worth checking closely if you find one.

4. Bicentennial halves (dated 1776-1976). Circulating Bicentennial halves are copper-nickel clad and worth face value. The 40% silver versions were made for collector sets and have an S mint mark, so a regular 1776-1976 or 1776-1976-D is not silver. Collectors still enjoy them, but don't count one as a silver find.

5. Anything odd. Proof coins that escaped from a set, foreign coins, and obvious errors. Look closely before deciding something is an error, since most oddities turn out to be damage.

How to spot silver fast

• Edges first. Stack the halves and scan the edges. Clad coins show a solid copper stripe. A 90% coin has a solid silver edge, and a 40% coin has a duller, grayish stripe.
• Dates second. Anything dated 1970 or earlier is a keeper.
• Scale for the borderline ones. 12.50 g is 90%, 11.50 g is 40%, and 11.34 g is clad.

Getting boxes of halves

A standard half dollar roll is 20 coins ($10), and a box is usually 50 rolls ($500). Most branches don't keep halves on hand, so expect to order them.

• Call ahead and ask nicely. Ask whether they can order a box of half dollars and how many days it takes. Some banks need a few days to a week.
• Ask about customer-wrapped rolls. These are rolls someone else turned in, and they're the most likely to hold silver.
• Smaller banks and credit unions are often more flexible about orders and fees than big branches. Policies vary, so ask about fees for non-customers and for returning coin.
• Space out your orders. A box every week or two keeps you a welcome regular.
• Return searched halves politely. Rewrap them neatly and deposit them at a branch that's fine with it, rather than dumping loose coin in a drive-through.

What to expect

Some boxes have nothing. Others have a handful of 40% halves and the occasional 90% coin. Results depend heavily on your area and on whether anyone else is searching the same bank. Keep a hunt log (date, bank, box count, finds) so you can see which sources are worth your time.

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Sources

• Wikipedia, "Kennedy half dollar" (compositions, weights, 2002 to 2020 collector-only production, 2021 return to circulation, 1970-D mint-set-only issue, Bicentennial reverse) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_half_dollar
• PCGS, "Here's Why You May Find Half Dollars in Circulation Again" - https://www.pcgs.com/news/half-dollars-in-circulation-again
• Coin World, "Federal Reserve is ordering half dollars for general circulation" - https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/federal-reserve-is-ordering-half-dollars-for-general-circulation
• Stack's Bowers, "40% Kennedy Half Dollar (1965-1970) Value Guide" - https://stacksbowers.com/coin-resource-center/half-dollars/kennedy-half-dollar/kennedy-half-dollar-type-2-40-silver/
• U.S. Mint, "Coin Specifications" - https://www.usmint.gov/learn/coins-and-medals/circulating-coins/coin-specifications
• Bank order times and fees vary; confirm with your branch. Values should be checked in a current price guide.