US Coins 1921 Walking Liberty Half Dollar
The Walking Liberty half dollar was a silver 50-cent piece or half dollar coin issued by the United States Mint from 1916 to 1947.
The Walking Liberty Half Dollar was introduced in 1916 and minted until 1947. Designed by Adolph A. Weinman, the coins featured a stylistic and strong image of the United States, perhaps fitting during the tumultuous times during which the coins were issued. The range of years included World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. Upon release, the coins were greeted enthusiastically by the public. Today, the series continues to enjoy a strong collector base.
The obverse of the coin depicts the full figure of Liberty, with a long gown and American flag draped across her shoulders and billowing around her. In one hand, she holds a bouquet of olive branches, while the other hand is held outstretched before her. The sun rises from the lower left. The reverse of the coin features an eagle perched on a rock with wings raised in a defiant stance. A mountain pine springs from the rock, as a symbol of America.
The design of the Walking Liberty Half Dollar is recognized as one of the most beautiful in the history of American coinage. The obverse design was chosen to be used on the American Silver Eagle when the bullion and collector coin series was introduced in 1986. For the past twenty five years, the design has been used without interruption.
Throughout the Walking Liberty series, mintages were fairly high. As a result, a circulated set can be completed without much difficulty except for a select few issues. In higher circulated grades, and in particularly in uncirculated condition, the completion of a full set represents a major accomplishment due to the rarity of some of the earliest issues. The 1921, 1921-D , and 1921-S are all low mintage coins that carry premiums across all grades. Later in the series, the 1938-D had an uncharacteristically low mintage and also carries a premium.
1916-1947 Walking Liberty Half Dollar History
Thomas Woodrow Wilson narrowly won re-election as 28th president of the United States, campaigning on the slogan, "He kept us out of war!" Within a few months, American troops would be heading for Europe after all. Mack Sennett's Keystone Kops were making millions laugh in the nation's movie houses, while New York's Wally Pipp was home-run king in baseball's American League.
The year was 1916, and America was a nation in ferment. It was a time of transition: from horse and buggy to horseless carriage ... farms to cities ... domestic tranquility to foreign entanglement ... peace to war.
Major change was taking place in U.S. coinage, too. Within the previous decade, exciting new designs had debuted on six different U.S. coins, supplanting the serene, sedate 19th-century portraits that preceded them. And now, in 1916, three more old-style coins, the Barber silver coins, were heading for the sidelines as well.
Outside artists not on the staff at the U.S. Mint had furnished new designs for the six previous changes, and Mint Director Robert W. Woolley showed his satisfaction by going outside again. In 1915, he invited three noted sculptors, Hermon A. MacNeil, Albin Polasek and Adolph A. Weinman, all of New York City, to prepare designs for the three silver coins, apparently with the intention of awarding a different coin to each artist.
The Mint may not have planned it this way, but Weinman ended up getting two of the three coins, the dime and half dollar, with MacNeil getting the quarter and Polasek being shut out. It's hard to imagine how Polasek or anyone else could have improved on the winning entries, though, for all three of the new coins, the Mercury dime, Standing Liberty quarter and Walking Liberty half dollar are magnificent coinage artworks.
A.A. Weinman was born in Germany but came to the United States at the age of 10 in 1880. He honed his skills as a student of the famed Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and by 1915 he was widely acclaimed as one of the nation's finest sculptors.
For the obverse of his design, Weinman chose a full-length figure of Liberty striding toward the dawn of a new day, clad in the Stars and Stripes and carrying branches of laurel and oak symbolizing civil and military glory. The reverse depicts a majestic eagle perched on a mountain crag, wings unfolded in a pose suggesting power, with a sapling of mountain pine symbolic of America springing from a rift in the rock. These strongly patriotic themes resonated perfectly across a nation then preparing (knowingly or not) to enter World War I, ironically against the land of Weinman's birth. Weinman placed his initials (AW) directly under the eagle's tail feathers.
Unlike the other two Barber coins, the Barber half dollar wasn't produced in 1916. Even so, the Mint delayed release of the new Walking Liberty coin until late November. It drew immediate praise. The New York Sun, for instance, pronounced it a "lively" coin, typifying "hustle," while the Boston Herald said it had a "forward look on its face."
First-year coins from the branch mints in Denver and San Francisco carry the "D" or "S" mintmark on the obverse, below IN GOD WE TRUST, as do some pieces minted the following year. Partway through production in 1917, the mintmarks' location was moved to the lower left of the reverse, just below the sapling, and that's where it remained until the series ended in 1947.
Over 485 million Walking Liberty halves were made between 1916 and 1947, but they were issued only sporadically during the 1920s and early 1930s, none being minted in 1922, 1924-26 and 1930-32. These were coins with substantial buying power, enough to buy a loaf of bread, a quart of milk and a dozen eggs in the early `30s, so it didn't take huge quantities to fill Americans' needs, especially after the Wall Street crash plunged the nation into the Great Depression.
Mintages were particularly low in 1921, and the P, D and S half dollars from that year all rank among the major keys of the series. Other scarce issues include the 1916, 1916-S, 1917-D and S with the mintmarks on the obverse and 1938-D. Brilliant proofs were minted from 1936 to 1942, totaling 74,400 pieces, and a very few satin-finish proofs were struck in 1916 and `17.
"Walkers," as they're frequently called, are large precious-metal coins with a much-admired design. As a result, they hold great appeal not only for traditional hobbyists but also for non-collectors. Many exist in grades up to Mint State-65. Even above that level, significant numbers exist for certain dates, particularly the later years. Most dates, however, come weakly struck, particularly on Liberty's left hand and leg, head and skirt lines and on the eagle's breast and leg feathers. Sharply struck coins often command substantial premiums. In an attempt to improve the striking characteristics of the design, some minor modifications were made by Chief Engraver George T. Morgan in 1918 and again by Assistant Engraver John R. Sinnock in 1937 and 1938. None of the revisions seemed to help, as even later issues are often weak in the central parts of the design. Places to check for wear include Liberty's head, breast, arms and left leg and the breast, leg and forward wing of the eagle.
A full set consists of 65 different date-and-mint combinations but is attempted and completed by many collectors. Although Walkers were not saved in any quantity by the public, particularly in the Depression years, professional numismatists like Wayte Raymond and others put away many early rolls during the `30s. Uncirculated specimens of certain dates in the `10s and `20s are probably only available today due to the foresight of these astute dealers. Later-date Walkers also have a strong following: many collectors assemble "short sets" from 1934 to 1947 or 1941 to `47. Type collectors just seek a single, high-grade example.
The Franklin half dollar succeeded the Walker in 1948. But 38 years later, in 1986, Uncle Sam dusted off the Weinman design for the obverse of the 1-ounce American Eagle silver bullion coin, which has been minted yearly ever since.
Walking Liberty Half Dollar Specifications
Walking Liberty Half Dollar ObverseAll Walking Liberty Half Dollars struck between 1916 and 1947 were made from a composition of 90% silver and 10% copper. When in uncirculated condition, these half dollars should weigh 12.50 grams (193 grains) with a diameter of 30.6 mm. All coins are struck on planchets with a reeded edge.
The Walking Liberty Half Dollar was produced at the Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco Mints. During 1916 and 1917, mint marks appeared on the obverse of the coin, below the motto “IN GOD WE TRUST”. During the year 1917, the mint mark was moved to the reverse of the coin, on the lower edge, between the rock and the rim of the coin. For that year, pieces were struck with either the mint mark on the obverse or the reverse, creating a total of four different branch mint issues.
Dates: 1916 – 1947
Mint Mark: none (Philadelphia), D (Denver), S (San Francisco)
Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper
Weight: 12.50 grams
Diameter: 30.6 mm
Edge: Reeded
Designer: Adolph A. Weinman
Walking Liberty Half Dollar Mintage
Walking Liberty Half Dollar ReverseThe mintage figures for the Walking Liberty Half Dollar varied over the course of the series. The mintage low occurred with the 1921-D at 208,000 coins, and the mintage high occurred in 1943 when 53,190,000 coins were minted in Philadelphia.
There were a total of nine different issues with a mintage of less than one million. These coins carry premiums at all grade levels. Most of the higher mintages occurred in the 1940’s. There were fifteen different issues with a mintage of over 10 million.
The table below shows the mintage figures for all circulation strike issues of the Walking Liberty Half Dollar series.
1916 608,000
1916-D 1,014,400
1916-S 508,000
1917 12,292,000
1917-D Obv Mint Mark 765,400
1917-D Rev Mint Mark 1,940,000
1917-S Obv Mint Mark 952,000
1917-S Rev Mint Mark 5,554,000
1918 6,634,000
1918-D 3,853,040
1918-S 10,282,000
1919 962,000
1919-D 1,165,000
1919-S 1,552,000
1920 6,372,000
1920-D 1,551,000
1920-S 4,624,000
1921 246,000
1921-D 208,000
1921-S 548,000
1923-S 2,178,000
1927-S 2,392,000
1928-S 1,940,000
1929-D 1,001,200
1929-S 1,902,000
1933-S 1,786,000
1934 6,964,000
1934-D 2,361,400
1934-S 3,652,000
1935 9,162,000
1935-D 3,003,800
1935-S 3,854,000
1936 12,614,000
1936-D 4,252,400
1936-S 3,884,000
1937 9,522,000
1937-D 1,676,000
1937-S 2,090,000
1938 4,110,000
1938-D 491,600
1939 6,812,000
1939-D 4,267,800
1939-S 2,552,000
1940 9,156,000
1940-S 4,550,000
1941 24,192,000
1941-D 11,248,400
1941-S 8,098,000
1942 47,818,000
1942-D 10,973,800
1942-S 12,708,000
1943 53,190,000
1943-D 11,346,000
1943-S 13,450,000
1944 28,206,000
1944-D 9,769,000
1944-S 8,904,000
1945 31,502,000
1945-D 9,966,800
1945-S 10,156,000
1946 12,118,000
1946-D 2,151,000
1946-S 3,724,000
1947 4,094,000
1947-D 3,900,600