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Did you know there’s a rare 1975 Roosevelt dime worth $350,000 500,000? (See update below.)
It’s true, and it’s probably the most valuable copper-nickel clad United States coin ever made.
But why is an old Roosevelt dime worth so much, and how can you find it?
I’m going to tell you:
- What makes this rare 1975 Roosevelt dime so special.
- How you might find one of these rare dimes.
- What you can do to find other old dimes like it.
A 1975 Roosevelt Dime Really Sold For $350,000?
Yes! A 1975 Roosevelt dime took nearly $350,000 at auction. The 1975 No-S Roosevelt dime sold for $349,600 in summer 2011.
UPDATE: On September 6, 2019 this same 1975 Roosevelt dime sold for $456,000 at auction. Then, less than 1 week later, it traded hands in a private transaction to a wealthy Roosevelt dime collector for $516,000. This means it increased in value by more than $165,000 in fewer than 10 years!
Amazing, huh?
So why is this Roosevelt dime so rare?
Because only 2 of these special collector coins are known to exist!
They were made accidentally, and it’s thought that very few escaped before a United States Mint employee noticed the error and stopped the presses.
Apparently, at least a couple of these dimes (and maybe more!) escaped from the Mint before anyone could do something about them.
What To Look For On A 1975 Dime
This rare, some would say elusive 1975 Roosevelt dime does NOT contain an “S” mintmark.
But here’s the kicker — if you found a no-S 1975 Roosevelt dime in your pocket change, there’s a 99.9% chance it isn’t the rare dime that’s the subject of this post.
Does your 1975 Roosevelt dime look something like the one in this photo?
If so, unfortunately it’s NOT the 1975 N0-S Roosevelt dime. It’s a regular, Philadelphia Mint 1975 Roosevelt dime.
You see, all Roosevelt dimes made at the Philadelphia Mint prior to 1980 have no “P” mintmark. This is totally normal.
It’s understandable that you probably find this to be very disappointing news, but the only way you’re likely to turn up a 1975 No-S Roosevelt dime is by finding it in a 1975 proof set.
What Is A Proof Set?
A proof set is a special set of collector coins that the United States Mint sells to coin collectors each year.
Proof coins are made on specially prepared dies and are struck on polished planchets (coin blanks). Each proof coin is struck multiple times to help bring up minute details.
Most proof coins look very sharply struck and many have shiny, even mirror-like surfaces.
Proof coins have been made in the United States since the 1800s. During that time and into the 1900s, most proof coins were sold individually. Since 1936, proof coins have usually been offered in sets.
Traditionally, proof sets were packaged at the Philadelphia Mint — but since 1968, they’ve been manufactured at the San Francisco Mint.
As you may know by now, most coins that come from the San Francisco Mint have an “S” mintmark.
Virtually all proof 1975 Roosevelt dimes have an “S” mintmark.
In fact, of the 2,845,450 proof Roosevelt dimes made at the San Francisco Mint in 1975, only 2 of these are known not to have an “S” mintmark — it’s one of the rarest modern US coins!
Other Proof No-S Roosevelt Dimes
The 1975 No-S proof Roosevelt dime might be among the rarest of modern dimes, but it’s certainly not the only no-S Roosevelt dime.
Check out these other No-S proof Roosevelt dimes:
- 1968 No-S Roosevelt dime — $10,500+
- 1970 No-S Roosevelt dime — $450+
- 1983 No -S Roosevelt dime — $400
Other Rare Roosevelt Dimes To Look For
Don’t lose hope of finding a rare Roosevelt dime!
Granted, that 1975 Roosevelt dime you just found is most likely not worth hundreds of thousands of dollars — but there are plenty of other old Roosevelt dimes worth much more than face value.
Check out these valuable, rare Roosevelt dimes you might find in pocket change:
- Any pre-1965 silver Roosevelt dime — worth $1.50+
- 1982 no-P Roosevelt dime — $75+
- 1996-W Roosevelt dime — $15+
More Info On Rare Dimes
In addition to the links I’ve included above, here are some other resources to help you learn more about your old dimes:
- Rare Dimes: A List Of Roosevelt Dime Errors
- A Clad Roosevelt Dime “Key Date” Analysis
- No-S Proof Roosevelt Dimes
I’m the Coin Editor here at TheFunTimesGuide. My love for coins began when I was 11 years old. I primarily collect and study U.S. coins produced during the 20th century. I’m a member of the American Numismatic Association (ANA) and the Numismatic Literary Guild (NLG) and have won multiple awards from the NLG for my work as a coin journalist. I’m also the editor at the Florida United Numismatists Club (FUN Topics magazine), and author of Images of America: The United States Mint in Philadelphia (a book that explores the colorful history of the Philadelphia Mint). I’ve contributed hundreds of articles for various coin publications including COINage, The Numismatist, Numismatic News, Coin Dealer Newsletter, Coin Values, and CoinWeek. I’ve authored nearly 1,000 articles here at The Fun Times Guide to Coins (many of them with over 50K shares), and I welcome your coin questions in the comments below!
