I was just wondering how come the U.S. mint has redesigned every Modern coin except the dime? edit: thanks to Drago the Wolf i remembered about the half dollar i over look as a modern coin so let me rephrase the quest "how come the U.S. mint has redesigned every Modern coin in average consumer circulation except the dime?"
It's boring, ugly, not worth anything, no one cares, seldom used It's boring, ugly, not worth anything, no one cares, seldom used, hard to handle, gosh I could go on for pages.
Simple answer - we have not had a Secretary of the Treasury with the guts to do it on his/her own even though they can by law do so. And, because Congress has passed no law mandating that it is done.
There was some talk of Ronald Reagan replacing FDR on the dime several years ago, but I have not heard anything recently. The dime may also be too small in size to do a special program on like the state quarters, national parks, etc. TC
Topcat is right, in 2003, there was a campaign to put Reagan on the dime, but many, including Nancy Reagan, opposed the project. Support swelled after Reagan passed away, but the senator who originally proposed the plan was unwilling to reintroduce the measure to Congress. Give it a few years, and I'm sure something new will happen with the dime.
The quarter should remain the coin of choices for special programs like the state and parks quarters, as it provides the most seigniorage to the government.
I wouldn't be surprised if there is a STRONG lobby in Congress to retain Roosevelt. After all he made a name for himself by being the only 4 term president (okay, he didn't go very far in his last term). Also he got us through the Great Depression AND most of WWII. Remember back 4-5 years when they wanted to change the nickel design. The Senator(?) from Virginia lobbied strongly to retain Monticello on the reverse. Notice that after a few "special" issues, the original design returned. That was just one squeaky wheel.
Well, I guess you're not including the half as a "modern" coin even though it is still available to the public, and even though it is only minted mainly for collectors, but people can still use them if they want to. But I too, have wondered about them redesigning the U.S. dime, and the half, and contrary to what a few people have said here, I hope the U.S. half NEVER goes away. I like more denominations, not less. Also, if they did the cent with a redesign, the dime is not much smaller than the cent, so I'm sure they could put a nice redesign on it. I think the reverse of the dime is about my favorite reverse in our tradionial coins, however, in our new coins, I'm really liking the Native American dollar coin designs. But unless they decide to change Lincoln off the cent, jefferson off the nickel, Washington off the quarter, and Kennedy off the half, I oppose taking F.D.Roosevelt off the dime. It would just be too odd, and quite frankly, I wish Eisenhower had remained on the dollar, regardless of the size change. However, I could see a temporary program on one or all of these coins where they changed the person on them, if they eventually reverted back to the person that is on them now. Much like the Prez Bux program.
I agree that Roosevelt would likely be retained, but I think it likely that at the very least a new reverse would be decided on. The torch and branches don't have the same personal connection to Roosevelt that Monticello has to Jefferson, and given the recent decision to once again change the reverse of the Lincoln cent, it would be unsurprising to me if the dime took a similar route.
One could argue for a change in the dime or the half-dollar in the next decade or so. I understand that many people have strong feelings for FDR and JFK, but in my opinion they are not in the same category as Washington, Jefferson, or Lincoln. A long shot could be John Adams who has received a great deal of positive attention lately. Also Ronald Reagan could be included in the category with FDR and JFK and might even appeal to a new generation of collectors.
I don't think you'll see Roosevelt removed from the dime until the last of the Depression and WWII survivors are gone. Ad polio and the March of Dimes to this legacy and you've got a huge group of fans both in the US and throughout the world. IMHO. New reverse? Maybe. New Portrait? Maybe. But still the Roosevelt Dime.
The primary reason there have been no changes to the Dime is due to the Massive, fantastic, great responses to keep it from all the poles the government has made. The wonderful, artistic and inspiring obverse and the Incomparably valuable ideals presented by the reverse can not be duplicated easily. Try imagining the time it took to come up with a very small coins reverse that encompases three very important features. Tree branches and a torch and all on one small location. And note the strategic locarion of the date, mint mark and designers initials in that otherwise empty location under Roosevelts neck. AND then too is that reeded edge that could be used as a saw if in need :thumb: I suspect your all jealous that you didn't think of all these great features for a coin. :goofer::goofer: Meanwhile back to my Martini.
FDR was born, reigned and died long before I was ever born, (1962). I could care less about him being on a coin...makes me want to use my debit card so that I no longer have to deal with dead Presidents...and I certainly wouldn't ever collect them!
I totally support a change to the reverse of both the dime and the half. Not sure about changing the front, unless something like my Famous Dogs Half Dollar program, or a program similar took on to the half or dime. But if something like that did happen, I'd say after the program, put JFK back on the front and the eagle back on the reverse. Same thing with the dime. Do a 3 year or so dime program with 3 different reverses then revert back, just like with the nickel. Quite frankly, I really wished that the quarter would have reverted back to its eagle reverse after the State Quarter program, but then we had the territory program, and now, the National Parks theme. *sigh* Will the quarter EVER return to its old self?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that the cent obverse, nickel, and United States quarter design remained unchanged for a longer period than the Roosevelt dime. The process of monetary design change is a convoluted political process requiring extensive consideration and negotiation, which generally can't be quickly achieved in our Democratic/Republic? representative process. I personally hope that more consideration is given to design aesthetics and functionality, rather than "political correctness", before we produce another Eisenhower, Susan B. Anthony or Sacajawea type coin design. Just my opinions!
