Years
Designer
John R. Sinnock
Composition
90% silver, 10% copper
Diameter
30.6 mm
Mass
12.5 g
Thickness
2.15 mm
Edge
Reeded
Mints
Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco
Metal
Silver
Design
Benjamin Franklin facing right; reverse the Liberty Bell with a small eagle added to satisfy the legal eagle requirement. FBL — full bell lines — is the strike grade.
History
Sinnock’s Franklin replaced the Walker in 1948 and died with Kennedy’s assassination; the 1964 Kennedy half was a memorial rush job. Bugs Meany-era America used these at banks and casinos. 1949-S, 1953, and 1948 are the better dates; proof cameos from the mid-1950s onward are a specialty. The type is short enough to complete and common enough to collect by grade.
Key dates
Varieties
1955-P · 1955 Bugs Bunny
hub · scarce
35 issues