1950 (S) Booker T. Washington Half Dollar

Coin Details

Auction Record

$7,331 MS67 11-04-2004 Heritage Auctions

Description

The 1950 (S) Booker T. Washington Half Dollar is a commemorative half dollar struck at the San Francisco Mint. Total mintage reached 512,091. Authorized in 1946 to honor Booker T. The obverse features a bust of Booker T. Washington facing right, the renowned African American educator and founder of the Tuskegee Institute, while the reverse displays the Hall of Fame for Great Americans at New York University, with a log cabin below representing Washington's birth as a slave in 1856. Designed by Isaac Scott Hathaway. Mintages further declined, particularly at Denver and San Francisco. Struck in 90% silver, 10% copper, weighing 12.5 grams, 30.6 mm in diameter, with a reeded edge. Cataloged as PCGS #9422. The Booker T. Washington Half Dollar is historically significant as the first U.S. coin to honor an African American. It was designed by Isaac Scott Hathaway, who was himself African American — a first for a U.S. Mint coin designer.