Last Public Release of JFK Half Dollars

The Kennedy Half Dollar was first issued shortly after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. It was first released in 1964, so it has been issued for more than half a century and it is still the only official U.S. Half Dollar with a circulating design. However, the last Kennedy Half Dollars issued to the public were the 2001 coins; since then, the coins have been made available only in limited quantities for collectors; they are not sold to the general public and are not seen in circulation. This collection features both of the 2001 coins, the last to be released to the public: one from the Philadelphia Mint (“P” mint mark above the date) and one from the Denver Mint (“D” mint mark). Both coins are in the same uncirculated condition as the day they left the U.S. Mint in 2001. The obverse features a portrait of Kennedy that was first used on Kennedy’s official Presidential Medal struck by the U.S. Mint; it was personally approved by Jacqueline Kennedy, the President’s widow. The reverse depicts the Presidential coat of arms. The Kennedy Half Dollar is the most popular U.S. coin with collectors around the world, but few people will ever be able to own both of the 2001 coins, especially in uncirculated condition.