Since its introduction in 1796, the dime has been issued in six different major types, excluding the 1792 "disme". The name for each type (except for the Barber dime) indicates the design on the coin's
obverse. •
Draped Bust 1796–1807 •
Capped Bust 1809–1837 •
Seated Liberty 1837–1891 •
Barber 1892–1916 •
Winged Liberty Head (Mercury) 1916–1945 •
Roosevelt 1946–present
"Disme" (1792) The Coinage Act of 1792, passed on April 2, 1792, authorized the mintage of a "disme", one-tenth the silver weight and value of a dollar. The composition of the disme was set at 89.24% silver and 10.76% copper. In 1792, a limited number of dismes were minted but never circulated. Some of these were struck in copper, indicating that the 1792 dismes were in fact
pattern coins. The first dimes minted for circulation did not appear until 1796, due to a lack of demand for the coin and production problems at the
United States Mint.
Draped Bust (1796–1807) The first dime to be circulated was the Draped Bust dime, in 1796. It featured the same obverse and reverse as all other circulating coins of the time, the so-called Draped Bust/Small Eagle design. This design was the work of then-Chief Engraver
Robert Scot. The portrait of Liberty on the obverse was based on a
Gilbert Stuart drawing of prominent
Philadelphia socialite Ann Willing Bingham, wife of noted American statesman
William Bingham. The reverse design is of a small
bald eagle surrounded by palm and olive branches, and perched on a cloud. Since the Coinage Act of 1792 required only that the cent and
half cent display their
denomination, Draped Bust dimes were minted with no indication of their value. All 1796 dimes have 15 stars on the obverse, representing the number of
U.S. states then in the Union. The first 1797 dimes were minted with 16 stars, reflecting
Tennessee's admission as the 16th state. Realizing that the practice of adding one star per state could quickly clutter the coin's design, U.S. Mint Director
Elias Boudinot ordered a design alteration, to feature just 13 stars (for the original
Thirteen Colonies). Therefore, 1797 dimes can be found with either 13 or 16 stars.
Capped Bust (1809–1837) The Draped Bust design was succeeded by the Capped Bust, designed by Mint Assistant Engraver John Reich. Both the obverse and reverse were changed extensively. The new reverse featured a bald eagle grasping three arrows (symbolizing strength) and an olive branch (symbolizing peace). Covering the eagle's breast is a U.S. shield with six horizontal lines and 13 vertical stripes. Also on the reverse is the lettering "10C," making it the only dime minted with the value given in cents (subsequent issues are inscribed with the words "ONE DIME"). The lack of numeric value markings on subsequent dime coins causes some confusion amongst foreign visitors, who may be unaware of the value of the coin. Also, the Capped Bust dime was the first dime to have its value written on the coin. Previous designs of the dime had no indication of its value, the way people determined its value was by its size Capped Bust dimes minted through 1828 are known as the Large type. This is partially because they were struck without a restraining collar, which gave them a broader appearance. In 1828, Chief Engraver
William Kneass introduced the close collar method of coining (which automated the process of placing
reeds on a coin's edge). In addition to standardizing the diameter of coins, the new method allowed the Mint to produce thicker coins. To maintain a standard weight and alloy, the diameter of most coins was reduced. In particular, the dime was reduced in diameter from 18.8 to 18.5 millimeters. This new Capped Bust dime, which began production in 1828, is known as the Small type. There are 123 varieties known of Capped Bust Dimes.
Seated Liberty (1837–1891) Christian Gobrecht completed the design of the Seated Liberty dime, whose obverse was used with every circulating silver U.S. coin of the period. Mint Director Robert Maskell Patterson requested a new coin design, to be reminiscent of the
Britannia image found on coinage of the
United Kingdom. Chief Engraver
William Kneass drew the original sketches, but suffered a stroke and was too ill to finish them or to oversee preparation of the
dies. The task then fell to Gobrecht, who was promoted to Second Engraver. The obverse features an image of Liberty sitting on a rock, wearing a dress and holding a staff with a
liberty cap on top. Her right hand is balancing a shield with the inscription "LIBERTY." The reverse featured the inscription "ONE DIME," surrounded by a wreath. All Seated Liberty dimes contain 90% silver and 10% copper, and are 17.9 millimeters (0.705 inch) in diameter. This size and metal composition would continue until 1965, when silver was permanently removed from circulating dimes. These were replaced with the legend "United States of America," which was moved from the reverse in mid-1860. At the same time, the laurel wreath on the reverse was changed to a wreath of corn, wheat, maple, and oak leaves and expanded nearly to the rim of the coin. This reverse design continued through the end of the series in 1891 and was changed only slightly in 1892, when the Barber dime debuted. Another variety is the 1838–40 dime minted with no drapery underneath the left elbow of Liberty. The change also ensured the quarter dollar (which is valued 2.5 times the dime) weighed 2.5 times the dime (6.25g), and the half dollar (twice the value of the quarter dollar) weighed twice what the quarter dollar weighed (12.5g). In this way, a specific weight of these coins, no matter the mixture of denominations, would always be worth the same. This relation in weight and value continued in the cupronickel coins from 1965 on. This produced the greatest rarities in the Seated Dime Series, the 1873 and 1874 Carson City Dimes, with arrows and the unique 1873 Carson City Dime without arrows.
Barber (1892–1916) The Barber dime is named for its designer,
Charles E. Barber, who was Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint from 1879 to 1917. The design was shared with the
quarter and
half-dollar of the same period. Extensive internal politics surrounded the awarding of the design job, which had initially been opened to the public. A four-member committee (which included Barber), appointed by then-Mint Director James Kimball, accorded only two of more than 300 submissions an honorable mention. Kimball's successor, Edward O. Leech, decided to dispense with the committees and public design competitions and simply instructed Barber to develop a new design. It has been speculated that this is what Barber had wanted all along. The Barber dime, as with all previous dimes, featured an image of Liberty on the obverse. She is wearing a
Phrygian cap, a
laurel wreath with a ribbon, and a headband with the inscription "LIBERTY". This inscription is one of the key elements used in determining the condition of Barber dimes.
Winged Liberty Head ("Mercury") (1916–1945) Although most commonly referred to as the "Mercury" dime, the Winged Liberty Head does not depict the
Roman messenger god. The obverse figure is a depiction of the mythological
goddess Liberty wearing a
Phrygian cap, a classic Western symbol of liberty and freedom, with its wings intended to symbolize freedom of thought. Designed by noted sculptor
Adolph A. Weinman, the Winged Liberty Head dime is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful U.S. coin designs ever produced. The composition (90% silver, 10% copper) and diameter (17.9 millimeters) of the "Mercury" dime was unchanged from the Barber dime. Weinman (who had studied under
Augustus Saint-Gaudens) won a 1915 competition against two other artists for the design job, and is thought to have modeled his version of Liberty on Elsie Kachel Stevens, wife of noted poet
Wallace Stevens. The dime was chosen to honor Roosevelt partly due to his efforts in the founding of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (later renamed the
March of Dimes), which originally raised money for
polio research and to aid victims of the disease and their families. Due to the limited amount of time available to design the new coin, the
Roosevelt dime was the first regular-issue U.S. coin designed by a Mint employee in more than 40 years. Chief Engraver
John R. Sinnock was chosen, as he had already designed a Mint presidential medal of Roosevelt. Sinnock's design placed his initials ("JS") at the base of Roosevelt's neck, on the coin's obverse. His reverse design elements of a torch, olive branch, and oak branch symbolized, respectively, liberty, peace, and strength. The Mint quickly issued a statement denying this, confirming that the initials were indeed Sinnock's. The same rumor arose after the release of the Sinnock designed
Franklin half dollar in 1948. at the
Recorder of Deeds Building in
Washington, D.C. Another controversy surrounding Sinnock's design involves his image of Roosevelt. Soon after the coin's release, it was claimed that Sinnock borrowed his design of Roosevelt from a
bas relief created by
African American sculptor
Selma Burke, unveiled at the Recorder of Deeds Building in
Washington, D.C. in September 1945. Sinnock denied this and stated that he simply utilized his earlier design on the Roosevelt medal. giving a total composition of 91.67%
Cu and 8.33%
Ni. This composition was selected because it gave similar mass (now 2.268 grams instead of 2.5 grams) and electrical properties (important in
vending machines)—and most importantly, because it contained no precious metal. The Roosevelt dime has been minted every year, beginning in 1946. Through 1955, all three mints,
Philadelphia,
Denver, and
San Francisco produced circulating coinage; production at San Francisco ended in 1955, resuming in 1968 with proof coinage only. Through 1964 "D" and "S"
mintmarks can be found to the left of the torch. From 1968, the mintmarks have appeared above the date. None were used in 1965–1967, and Philadelphia did not show a mintmark until 1980 (in 1982, an error left the "P" off a small number of dimes, which are now valuable). To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the design, the 1996 mint sets included a "W" mintmarked dime made at the
West Point Mint. A total of 1,457,000 dimes were issued in the sets, making it the lowest mintage Roosevelt dime up to that time. Since then, the "P" mint mark 2015 reverse proof dime and "W" mint mark 2015 proof dime, minted at Philadelphia and West Point for inclusion in the March of Dimes collector set, have the lowest mintages with 75,000 pieces struck for each.
Semiquincentennial Dime (2026) {{multiple image In 2026, the United States Mint is producing a dime for the
Semiquincentennial, featuring a capped
Liberty on the obverse and eagle carrying arrows on the reverse, dual dated as 1776–2026. The chosen design was recommended by the
CCAC on November 18, 2024, and follows the theme of "Liberty over Tyranny". The Mint describes the obverse as Liberty opposing the "tyranny of the British monarchy" with "steadfast resolve", and the eagle on the reverse as "representing the American Revolution and the colonists' fight for independence". The semiquincentennial dime omits the olive branch and features only the arrows representing war. ==See also==