1977-D Roosevelt Dime : History & Value

By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
 

Coinage production at the United States Mint got off to a rocky start in January 1977, as a natural gas shortage gripped most of the country. Throughout Pennsylvania, most factories were shuttered as winter weather blanketed the state and made fuel deliveries nearly impossible. When Mint leadership made the decision to shut down its die cutting operations in Philadelphia, the result was a cessation of the Mint’s coin-producing operations throughout the country.

On February 9, 1977, Frank H. MacDonald, then Deputy Director of the Mint, announced that the Denver facility would cease production; two days later, the branch mint in Colorado shut down. While open-ended, the stoppage was expected to last no more than one or two months.

During this break, the Denver Mint underwent a series of upgrades, including the modernization of its one- and five-cent coin-production machinery and the installation of a state-of-the-art CCTV surveillance and alarm system. But despite these improvements, the building itself was nearly 100 years old. Nevertheless, the Treasury Department was hesitant to ask Congress for a second round of funding to build a replacement facility. This was necessary because while $65 million had been appropriated for the task by the House of Representatives during the 94th Congress (1975-77), the Senate Banking Committee refused to consider the bill.

Meanwhile, the three facilities at Philadelphia, West Point, and Denver fired a combined 117 employees.

As a result of these disruptions, the issuance of dimes at the Denver Mint was reduced by almost 46% from the previous year. It wouldn’t be until 1980 that Denver struck a mintage of dimes equal to that of 1976. At Philadelphia, the mintage of dimes was up in 1977.

The 1977-D Roosevelt Dime in Today’s Market

Examples designated Full Bands (FB) (used by PCGS) or Full Torch (FT) (NGC) hold a dramatic premium over their standard grade counterparts.

In MS67, the highest graded FB example, the 1977-D Roosevelt Dime is worth just over $1,000; merely one grade lower at MS66, coins with the FB designation are worth approximately $150. The price drops to $25 for examples graded MS65 and to between $10 and $20 for MS63 and MS64-graded examples. Due to the grading requirements for FB examples, the lowest grade possible for this designation is MS60. In that grade, the 1977-D Roosevelt Dime is valued at $5 to $7.

Interestingly, the only MS69 for this type is also an obverse die cap error. Due to the uniface nature of this piece, it can’t possibly earn the FB designation. This error has repeatedly sold for just over $1,700 and currently holds the auction record for this type. The high value of this piece is due partly to its status as an error, and partly to its excellent condition. This must be true, because two grades lower in MS67, the price plummets to less than $100. In fact, this grade is worth between $50 and $60. At one grade lower, in MS66, the 1977-D is worth between $10 and $15. In MS64 and MS65, while several have recently sold for up to $6, the true price for this grade is only $1. Examples between MS60 and MS63 are quite common and command a price somewhere between $1 and face value.

As a circulating coin with a large mintage of 376,607,228 pieces, non-Mint State examples have no numismatic premium and are worth only face value. That said, Mint State dimes do hold a premium.

This coin is available also as part of the 1977 Uncirculated Mint Set, which was sold by the Mint for $7 starting on September 1, 1977. As of December 2024, these sets can be purchased for between $5 and $10.

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Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens

Top Population: PCGS MS67FB (4, 12/2024), NGC MS67FT (17, 12/2024), and CACG N/A (12/2024).

• PCGS MS67FB #21518742: “The Maltese Collection,” Heritage Auctions, October 18, 2020, Lot 7238 – $1,020.
• PCGS MS67FB #90112077: “The Maltese Collection,” Heritage Auctions, October 20, 2020, Lot 25606 – $1,020.
• NGC MS67FT #2542756-005: “The Centurion Collection,” GreatCollections, June 3, 2018 – View; GreatCollections, December 2, 2018 – View.
• PCGS MS68 #44391597: GreatCollections, February 20, 2022 – View.
• NGC MS67FT #2540100-002: Heritage Auctions, December 7, 2014, Lot 7441 – $211.50. Paul Kiraly #1 NGC Registry Roosevelt Dimes, Circulation Issue.
• PCGS MS67+ #25623136: Heritage Auctions, April 10, 2016, Lot 23113 – $94.
• PCGS MS67 #60024131: Heritage Auctions, March 29, 2004, Lot 382 – $75.90.

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Design

Obverse:

Most of the obverse design consists of a left-facing bust of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In the northwest quadrant, directly in front of Roosevelt’s face, is the standard legend LIBERTY. Below the president’s chin, in smaller letters, is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST. Directly below the neck truncation on the bust are the designer’s initials JS. Placed at a slightly higher line than the motto and to the designer’s initials right is the date 1977. Unlike earlier dimes struck before 1967 that have the mintmark on the lower reverse to the left of the torch, the D mintmark is on the obverse above the date 1977.

Reverse:

Centered in the reverse design is a flaming torch symbolizing liberty. The torch sits between the olive branch of peace on the left and the oak branch of victory on the right. Split into four parts between the branches and torch is the USA’s traditional motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. Since the words are divided as follows, E PLU / RIB / US U / NUM, there are centering dots between each word. This central design is completely surrounded by the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA at the top and the slightly larger denomination ONE DIME on the bottom.

Edge:

The edge of the 1977-D Roosevelt Dime is reeded.

Designer

John R. Sinnock (1888-1947) served as the eighth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint from 1925 through his death on May 14, 1947. He is responsible for the designs of both the Roosevelt dime and the Franklin Half Dollar. Sinnock engraved the 1926 Sesquicentennial American Independence Half Dollar and gold $2.5, and he also helped sculpt the Army’s modern Purple Heart Medal in 1932 for soldiers wounded in combat.

Coin Specifications

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