When were dimes and quarters made of silver?

You may have heard that at one point the dime and the quarter were actually made of silver.

That’s true.

It might seem that silver currency must have been ages ago, but in reality silver coins were produced all the way up until 1964! That’s quite recent!

Silver dimes, quarters, and actually even half-dollars usually fall into a category called “junk silver”. This just means that there is no numismatic value to the coin, but it’s made of silver so there’s some value in it because of the silver content.

What Dimes Are Made of Silver?

The main types of dime that were made of silver were the Barber dimes, Mercury dimes, and Roosevelt dimes.

The Barber dime was minted from 1892-1916. Created by Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint, Charles Barber. The design features Lady Liberty’s profile on the obverse, and the reverse shows a wreath and the denomination “one dime”.

The Mercury dime was minted from 1916-1945. This dime was designed by Adolph Weinman, and is actually a representation of Liberty wearing a winged cap, though the similarity to the Roman god Mercury was enough to nickname it “the Mercury dime”.

And the Roosevelt dime was first minted in 1946. The Roosevelt dime was designed by John R. Sinnock to honor President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in part for his work in helping to found the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (later renamed the March of Dimes), which raised money to aid in polio research and victims of the disease.

What Quarters Are Made of Silver?

All quarters before 1965 were made of silver, so if you’ve got a quarter dated before then, it’s a safe bet to say it’s a silver quarter.

There were also some Bicentennial quarters made with silver (but not all), the Bicentennial quarters that are made of silver are the ones with an S mintmark (struck at the San Francisco Mint). These quarters were made with 40% silver

There are also silver Proof quarters that are made with 90% silver, but generally speaking these are quarters you would purchase in a set, and you’re unlikely to find them in circulation anywhere as they’re worth more than their face-value.

When Did They Stop Making Silver Coins?

Production of silver coins ended in the year 1965, when the mint switched the composition of quarters, dimes, and half dollars to a copper-nickel alloy, which is still used in coins to this day.

Collectors aren't a big fan of the new compositions but that doesn't mean there aren't still valuable or rare coins being produced today!

Are Silver Dimes and Quarters Valuable?

While they do inherently hold more value than modern coinage, the value of silver dimes and quarters isn’t always much. You can probably get close to the intrinsic value of the silver for a silver quarter or dime, though there are some coins that are worth more because of scarcity, rarity, age, and other numismatic values.

Currently (at the time of publishing) the spot price of silver is at about 24.06, if you multiply that by the silver weight of a dime, which is 0.07234 troy ounce, you’ll get the melt value of your dime, which in this case would be $1.74. If you had a good size collection of silver dimes, that would be a good chunk of change!

How Many Silver Quarters Make an Ounce?

If you wanted one Troy ounce of silver from silver quarters, it would take about 6 quarters to make just over one Troy ounce of silver. One silver quarter contains 0.18084 troy ounce of pure silver. 

One silver quarter’s melt value can be calculated the same way as the dime, multiply the weight of the silver by the current spot price of silver. At the time of publishing, that means a silver quarter is worth about $4.35!