#1 Washington Quarter Buyer Las Vegas & Henderson

History

The longest quarter dollar series to date, the Washington Quarter Dollar was originally intended as a commemorative issue to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of George Washington. The series began in 1932 and continued until 1998, although variations of the series have continued to the present date albeit in varying commemorative form. Like all of the quarter dollar series before it, the Washington quarter dollars were, initially, composed primarily of silver at 90% with the remainder being copper. As silver became more valuable, the decision was made to remove the more valuable silver metal and produce a coin that would “sandwich” the base metals of copper and nickel with an inner core of pure copper. The sandwich term, in this case, was a reference to the layers of copper-nickel alloy. These types of coins have come to be referred to as “clad” coinage and were first introduced in 1965. As a result of this significant change in composition, the coins minted from 1932 until 1964 are generally more desirable due to the intrinsic value stemming from the high silver content. The Washington quarter dollar coins were minted in the Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco mints.

The obverse or front of the coin displays the bust of George Washington with the words “in God We Trust” appearing just beneath his chin. Above his head is the word, “Liberty” at the top of the coin. The date of mintage appears just below Washington’s neck at the bottom of the coin. The reverse of the coin displays an eagle with wings outstretched perched on a bundle of arrows with olive branches underneath. Immediately above the eagle’s head is the motto, “E Pluribus Unum”, and the words, “United States Of America” appear above the motto at the top of the coin. The denomination, displayed as, “Quarter Dollar” appears under the olive branches at the bottom of the coin. The mintmark appears just below the olive branches and above the denomination. The Washington quarter dollars minted from 1932 to 1964 weigh 6.25 grams and have a diameter of 24.3 mm. In 1965, with the use of clad coinage, the weight became 5.67 grams and the composition was 75% copper and 25% nickel bonded to an inner core of pure copper. The diameter remained unchanged at 24.3 mm.

In 1968, the mintmark was moved to the obverse of the coin, just behind the neck of Washington. In 1976, in order to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the United States, the date of mintage was changed to display as 1776-1976. The reverse of the coin was also changed with the eagle replaced by a colonial drummer facing a torch surrounded by thirteen stars representing the original thirteen colonies. The eagle reverse would return in 1977 and continue until 1998.

Value

Most Washington quarter dollars from 1965 to 1998 are still considered currency and do not generally carry a premium over their face value, (silver proof examples are a primary exception). Washington quarter dollars in the series from the earlier years, (1932 to 1964), are referred to as “constitutional” or “junk” silver and raw, ungraded examples are generally sold and melted down for the silver content, thus extremely poor, worn example coins while having no appreciable collector value will regularly sell for the “spot price” of silver, based on their silver content. Most common date examples from this period in the series can be obtained for $7 to $8 even in very fine condition. However, less common date coins can reach hundreds of dollars in high mint state. Key over-dates and double-die coins can reach in the low thousands of dollars in mint state, while two key dates, the 1932 D and the 1937 double-die obverse will exceed well over $10,000 in high mint state.

There are many varied opinions on the condition (or grade) of a coin, and the aforementioned values reflect the highest retail prices that have been obtained for those coins that have been assessed by a third party grading company. Such coins have been authenticated, graded and encapsulated by expert coin grading companies to minimize any doubt as to their quality and value and therefore their potential worth.

We Buy Washington Quarter Dollars

We would like to buy your coins and as a business it is our pledge to offer you the best value for them, however, always remember that the prices you may find online or in price guides usually represent the highest retail value for the coin in an already certified condition. As a trusted dealer we will have our coin specialists evaluate your coins at no cost and offer you a price that is both fair for you, but that also allows us to realize a reasonable profit.