By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
According to the 1988 Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, no Kennedy Half Dollar was struck for general circulation in 1987 due to declining demand. Those coins already in circulation were deemed “sufficient for current needs,” and all freshly struck pieces were destined for Mint Sets. As for other United States Mint product options, 844,291 1987 Proof Sets and 102,245 1987 Prestige Proof Sets were purchased via mail order and at Mint retail locations between June 1987 and June 1988. Since the San Francisco Mint was the only facility that produced Proof versions, these sets all contained a 1987-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof.
While few business-strike Kennedy halves were produced at the Denver and Philadelphia mints in 1987 (2,890,758 pieces each), San Francisco provided a bumper crop of Proof strikes. Besides the high Bicentennial mintages of 1976, when the Mint struck 7,059,099 clad Proof and 4,000,000 million 40% silver Proof pieces, the San Francisco facility had its highest mintage of the entire series in 1987. At 4,227,728, the total run from San Francisco in 1987 was almost 25% higher than any year since 1981.
While there are no significant varieties in either the Cherrypickers Guide or on varietyvista.com, the U.S. Mint started using the MMS-007 style mintmark on the 1987-S half. The 007 style, introduced in 1987 and used until 1990 on Proof Kennedy halves, is slightly thicker than the previous “very tall” MMS-006 style.
How Much Is the 1987-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof Worth?
1987 United States Proof Sets are plentiful and inexpensive, so it is not difficult to acquire a nice example of a 1987-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof.
Most examples remain in original government packaging, but several thousand Proofs have been encapsulated by the leading grading services. Depressing that potential population is the fact that the issue’s terminal point appears to be Proof 70, which means even in “perfect” grade, a submitter is not likely to profit from the encapsulation of the coin.
Occasionally, examples enter circulation; one of the authors of this article spent one in 1989 to buy candy at a Hopewell, Virginia convenience store. Impaired, circulated, or low-grade 1987-S Proofs are worth between face value and $1.
* * *
1987-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
Top Population: PCGS PR70DCAM (1,631, 4/2025), NGC PF70UCAM (798, 4/2025), and CAC PR69DCAM (10, 4/2025).
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 30, 2025 – $40. Buy It Now.
- NGC PF70UCAM: eBay, March 20, 2025 – $79.95. Buy It Now.
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 18, 2025 – $38.98. Buy It Now.
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 14, 2025 – $18.50. 11 Bids.
- NGC PF70UCAM: eBay, March 13, 2025 – $69.95. Buy It Now.
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 12, 2025 – $19.50. 11 Bids.
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 10, 2025 – $21.49. 9 Bids.
- PCGS PR70DCAM: eBay, March 8, 2025 – $19.70. 10 Bids.
* * *
Design
Obverse:
The obverse of the Kennedy Half Dollar was designed by Gilroy Roberts, Chief Engraver at the United States Mint from July 22, 1948, to February 11, 1965. Roberts also designed President Kennedy’s inaugural medal, which served as the basis of the present design.
The central motif is an effigy of the 35th President of the United States, the late John Fitzgerald Kennedy. A war hero and (at the time) the youngest person ever elected president, Kennedy was inaugurated on January 20, 1961, and assassinated on November 22, 1963. The nation’s grief was such that Congress and the U.S. Mint rushed through a design change on the half dollar denomination to commemorate the bereaved politician.
Atop the upper half of the rim is the word LIBERTY, with Kennedy’s hair covering the bottom portions of the letters “B”, “E”, and “R”. The date 1987 is cradled at the bottom of the coin, while the national motto IN GOD WE TRUST is inscribed in a straight line above the year but divided by the sharp truncation of Kennedy’s neck. The mintmark S is on the right side of the point of this truncation.
Gilroy Roberts’ initials are on the truncation line of Kennedy’s bust, above the “WE” on the bottom right side of the coin.
Reverse:
Roberts’ assistant Frank Gasparro designed the reverse. He based the eagle on the Presidential Coat of Arms from the Seal of the President of the United States, which itself is based on the obverse of the Great Seal of the United States. The Presidential Seal in its current form was finalized by President Harry S. Truman in 1945, though the number of stars on the seal (and hence the coin) went from 48 to 50 as the states of Alaska and Hawaii entered the Union.
The heraldic eagle’s wings and legs spread in four directions. The left talon (viewer’s right) holds arrows, a symbol of war, while the right claw (viewer’s left) holds an olive branch, a symbol of peace. It is tradition to have the eagle face one side or the other relative to national circumstances at the time of striking: in this instance, the eagle faces towards the olive branch despite America’s involvement in Vietnam and other conflicts around the world.
Frank Gasparro’s initials FG are between the eagle’s left leg and tail feathers.
A Union shield covers the eagle’s breast. Vertical bars representing the 13 red and white stripes of the American flag run down most of its face, the stripes representing the original 13 colonies of the United States. The top of the shield (a horizontal band is otherwise known in heraldry as a “chief“) features no stars.
Immediately above the eagle’s head is a scroll featuring the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. The design behind and above the eagle, which consists of 15 rays, nine stars, and a mass of clouds, is called a “glory” and is a common design element of both heraldry and an earlier period of numismatics.
The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA runs clockwise along the top rim of the reverse, while the denomination HALF DOLLAR runs counterclockwise along the bottom. Dots are between the two inscriptions at both ends. Surrounding the eagle is a ring of 50 stars, representing the 50 states of the Union at the time of the coin’s production.
Edge:
The edge of the 1987-S Proof Kennedy Half Dollar is reeded with 150 reeds.
Designers
Gilroy Roberts was the ninth Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint, serving from 1948-1965. He is primarily remembered for his design of the Kennedy Half Dollar obverse.
Frank Gasparro was an American medalist and coin designer. After serving as an assistant engraver to Gilroy Roberts, he became the 10th Chief Engraver of the United States Mint on February 11, 1965, after Roberts’ work with the Franklin Mint lead to the ninth Chief Engraver’s departure. Besides the Kennedy Half Dollar reverse, Gasparro also designed the Lincoln Memorial Cent reverse, the Eisenhower Dollar obverse and regular reverse, and the Susan B Anthony Dollar, among other works. He retired from the Mint on January 16, 1981 (View Designer’s Profile).
Coin Specifications
| Country: | United States of America |
| Year of Issue: | 1987 |
| Denomination: | Half Dollar (50 Cents USD) |
| Mintmark: | S (San Francisco) |
| Mintage: | 4,227,728 |
| Alloy: | .750 copper, .250 nickel bonded to a pure copper core |
| Weight: | 11.30 g |
| Diameter: | 30.61 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | Gilroy Roberts |
| REV Designer: | Frank Gasparro |
| Quality: | Proof |
* * *