1969-DS Kennedy Half Dollar BU & Proof 2-pc Set

1969 Kennedy Half Dollar Set

In 1963, the United States of America lost its president when John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. The following year, the U.S. Mint released a new half dollar honoring the fallen leader. In 1969 — the year the U.S. kept Kennedy’s promise of putting a man on the Moon — only two mints produced Kennedy Half Dollars. The Denver Mint produced the coin for circulation, while the San Francisco Mint struck the coin in mirror-like Proof condition. This set brings both the Brilliant Uncirculated (BU) coin from Denver and the proof from San Francisco together housed in a custom insert card featuring images from 1969, protected by an acrylic holder.

Popular Tribute to a Fallen President

The story of this coin is now numismatic legend: after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November of 1963, Congress moved quickly to ensure that the U.S. Mint would be able to create new Half Dollars featuring the former president’s profile along with the Presidential Seal. Featuring U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Gilroy Roberts’ bust of President John F. Kennedy, the coins were released in January of the following year — just a few short months after JFK’s passing. The coin was originally meant to be a one-year-only tribute to the fallen President. It proved to be so popular, however, that it replaced the existing Benjamin Franklin Half Dollar and the U.S. Mint has issued it every year since. The coin’s reverse is a modified design of the Presidential Seal by Frank Gasparro, who replaced Roberts as the U.S. Mint’s Chief Engraver in 1965.

1969 was one of the most tumultuous years in American history featuring such events and movements as Woodstock, Vietnam and Civil Rights marches. Add to it are these fabulous coins, a fabulous two-coin set that belongs in your collection. Click it to your cart today!