1979 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1979

The small Susan B. Anthony dollar replaced the Eisenhower dollar. It was too easily confused with the quarter and saw little use.

New this year: the Susan B. Anthony Dollar.

The Mint in the 1970s

The decade opened with the end of silver in circulating coinage: the last 40% silver Kennedy halves were dated 1970. The Eisenhower dollar arrived in 1971 and after 1974 the San Francisco Mint stopped placing its S on circulating cents, concentrating on proof coins for collectors. Rising copper prices led the Mint to test aluminum cents dated 1974, which were never issued.

For the nation's Bicentennial, quarters, half dollars and dollars struck in 1975 and 1976 all carry the dual date 1776-1976, so no coins of those denominations are dated 1975. The small Susan B. Anthony dollar replaced the Eisenhower dollar in 1979 and the West Point and San Francisco facilities struck unmarked cents to help meet demand.

How many coins were made in 1979

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 13,503,728,056 coins dated 1979 across 13 issues. That is close to the 1978 total of 12,385,812,561. In 1980 the figure rose to 16,426,066,073.

No earlier year on our list comes close: it was the largest output up to that point.

By mint: Denver 5,649,767,056 (42%, up from 5,210,415,561), Philadelphia 5,286,810,000 (39%, down from 5,352,447,000), West Point 1,705,850,000 (13%, up from 1,531,250,000) and San Francisco 861,301,000 (6.4%, up from 291,700,000).

1979 coins by denomination

Cents: 10,157,872,254 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Lincoln Memorial Cent, up 3.2% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979 (3,560,940,000) and the most plentiful the 1979-D (4,139,357,254).

Nickels: 789,055,672 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Jefferson Nickel, up 12% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979-D (325,867,672) and the most plentiful the 1979 (463,188,000).

Dimes: 706,361,184 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Roosevelt Dime, down 25% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979 (315,440,000) and the most plentiful the 1979-D (390,921,184).

Quarters: 1,008,497,780 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Washington Quarter, up 25% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979-D (489,789,780) and the most plentiful the 1979 (518,708,000).

Half Dollars: 84,127,422 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Kennedy Half Dollar, up 199% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979-D (15,815,422) and the most plentiful the 1979 (68,312,000).

Dollar Coins: 757,813,744 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Susan B. Anthony Dollar, up 1189% on 1978. The scarcest is the 1979-S (109,576,000) and the most plentiful the 1979-P (360,222,000).

Every 1979 circulation issue at a glance

• 1979-D Kennedy Half Dollar: 15,815,422 struck, more than 56% of the series' 116 issues, similar to 1978.
• 1979 Kennedy Half Dollar: 68,312,000 struck, more than 87% of the series' 116 issues, up from 14,350,000 in 1978.
• 1979-S Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 109,576,000 struck, more than 80% of the series' 11 issues.
• 1979-D Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 288,015,744 struck, more than 90% of the series' 11 issues.
• 1979 Roosevelt Dime: 315,440,000 struck, 54th lowest of 168 in the series, down from 663,980,000 in 1978.
• 1979-D Jefferson Nickel: 325,867,672 struck, more than 59% of the series' 146 issues, similar to 1978.
• 1979-P Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 360,222,000 struck, the highest mintage of the series.
• 1979-D Roosevelt Dime: 390,921,184 struck, 61st lowest of 168 in the series, up from 282,847,540 in 1978.
• 1979 Jefferson Nickel: 463,188,000 struck, more than 72% of the series' 146 issues, similar to 1978.
• 1979-D Washington Quarter: 489,789,780 struck, more than 70% of the series' 144 issues, up from 287,373,152 in 1978.
• 1979 Washington Quarter: 518,708,000 struck, more than 73% of the series' 144 issues, similar to 1978.
• 1979 Lincoln Memorial Cent: 3,560,940,000 struck, 41st lowest of 104 in the series, similar to 1978.

The 1 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Lincoln Memorial Cent: Aluminum trials, West Point and the zinc switch

Rising copper costs led the Mint to strike about 1.5 million aluminum cents dated 1974 as a test. Congress did not approve them. Nearly all were melted, though a few left the Mint and are not legal to own. Meanwhile, demand kept growing. The West Point facility struck billions of cents in these years with no mint mark, making them indistinguishable from Philadelphia coins.

Proofs struck at San Francisco show Filled S and Clear S varieties in 1979 and 1981. The clear S is the scarcer. In 1982 the Mint changed to copper-plated zinc, lowering the weight from 3.11 grams to 2.5 grams. That year has seven major varieties combining metal (bronze or zinc), date size (large or small) and mint (Philadelphia or Denver). A scale is the easiest way to tell bronze from zinc for 1982.

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Jefferson Nickel: Mint marks move to the obverse

When mint marks returned in 1968, they moved to the obverse, just to the right of the date. San Francisco struck circulating nickels from 1968 to 1970, then only proofs from 1971 onward. The 1971 proof nickel without an S, caused by a die that was never punched, is a major rarity, with only about 1,655 reported struck.

Demand grew through the 1970s with inflation. Output at the two main mints sometimes exceeded half a billion. Proofs from 1979 show Filled S and Clear S varieties. The clear S is scarcer. Coins from these years are common, though full steps examples from some Denver dates are hard to find. Many circulated pieces show weak strikes on the steps and on Jefferson's hair, the first places to check.

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Roosevelt Dime: Mint marks move above the date

In 1968 the mint mark moved to the obverse just above the date. San Francisco began striking proof dimes for collectors the same year. A few proof dies left the Mint without the S, creating the rare no-S proofs dated 1968, 1970, 1975 and 1983. The 1975 is one of the great modern rarities with only two examples known. Proof sets of 1979 and 1981 show two mint mark styles: a filled Type 1 S and a clearer Type 2 S that is scarcer.

Philadelphia added a P mint mark to the dime in 1980. Two years later a Philadelphia die missing its P reached circulation. The 1982 no-P dime became one of the most popular modern errors. Business strike mintages stayed in the hundreds of millions per mint and passed one billion at Philadelphia in 1988. Dimes from these years turn up in change constantly. Only well-struck uncirculated pieces, proof varieties and errors draw real collector interest.

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Washington Quarter: The eagle returns before the state quarters

The eagle reverse came back in 1977. From 1977 to 1979 the West Point facility struck quarters for circulation without any mint mark, so they cannot be told apart from Philadelphia coins. A P mint mark first appeared on quarters in 1980. From then on every circulating quarter shows the mint that struck it.

Mintages of 1982 and 1983 were large, but the Mint issued no uncirculated sets in those years, so few were saved. Well-preserved examples of both years are hard to find. Silver proofs in 90 percent silver returned in 1992 alongside the clad proofs. Mintages climbed past one billion at Denver in 1995. The 1998 quarter was the last with Flanagan's eagle reverse. In 1999 the 50 State Quarters program replaced it with rotating designs.

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Kennedy Half Dollar: Eagle reverse and dwindling demand

The eagle reverse returned in 1977. Halves saw little use in commerce and mintages fell into the tens of millions, then lower. The 1982 Philadelphia issue includes a variety missing Gasparro's FG initials from the reverse. In 1987 no halves were made for circulation; the 2,890,758 coins from each mint went only into uncirculated sets.

Silver proofs in 90 percent silver returned in 1992. A 1998-S matte finish silver half, 64,141 struck, was sold in a set honoring Robert F. Kennedy and is one of the scarcest modern Kennedys. Circulation strikes of this period often show bag marks from handling in large bags. Well-preserved examples of the low mintage dates, such as 1987, are worth seeking. The 1999 Philadelphia run of 8.9 million was also small.

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Susan B. Anthony Dollar: 1979: launch year and the rim change

The Susan B. Anthony dollar was authorized by a law signed on October 10, 1978 and released on July 2, 1979. It replaced the large Eisenhower dollar with a coin 26.5 millimeters across, made of copper-nickel clad copper. All three mints struck it in enormous numbers: 360,222,000 at Philadelphia, 288,015,744 at Denver and 109,576,000 at San Francisco, a total of 757,813,744. The Philadelphia coins carried a P mint mark, the first time that letter had appeared on a US coin since the wartime nickels of 1942 to 1945.

The public turned against it almost at once. It was close to a quarter in size and color and had a reeded edge, so people confused the two. Cash registers had no slot for it either. Large numbers stayed in Treasury and bank vaults, which is why uncirculated 1979 dollars remain plentiful today and most worn ones are worth face value.

Two varieties make 1979 worth a careful look. After a large number of coins had been struck, the Mint widened the rim on the Philadelphia dies. On this Wide Rim, or Near Date, variety the bottom of the date almost touches the rim; on the common Narrow Rim the date sits farther in. The Wide Rim is considerably scarcer but not rare. San Francisco's proofs also come in two types: early coins have a filled, blob-like S, while those struck late in the year show a clear, open S. The Type 2 Clear S is the scarcer proof.

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