The United States Mint issued a commemorative silver dollar to recognize and celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the March of Dimes Foundation. The non-profit organization was originally founded by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to combat polio and now works to improve the health of mothers and babies.
During the design selection phase, there were multiple design candidates released by the US Mint which incorporated images of the Roosevelt Dime, the Mercury Dime portrait, or the dime books associated with the organization’s fundraising efforts. While the final selected designs did not include dime images, the US Mint would issue a collector set including two specially minted Roosevelt Dimes.
The obverse design of the 2015 March of Dimes Silver Dollar (Buy on eBay) features profile portraits of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Dr. Jonas Salk, two leaders in the fight against polio. This side of the coin is intended to pay homage to the past of the organization. The inscriptions include “Liberty”, “In God We Trust”, and the date “2015”. The obverse was designed by Paul Balan and engraved by Michael Gaudioso.
The reverse design features a depiction of a baby cuddled in the hand of a parent. The inscriptions read “United States of America”, “March of Dimes”, “$1”, and “E Pluribus Unum”. This side of the coin is intended to represent the foundation’s current dedication to the health of babies everywhere. The reverse was designed and engraved by Don Everhart.
The United States Mint opened sales for the March of Dimes Silver Dollars on March 13, 2015. On that date, individual proof and uncirculated versions of the coin were offered under introductory pricing. A maximum authorized mintage of 500,000 was applicable across all product offerings.
Later in the year on May 4, 2015, the US Mint would offer the 2015 March of Dimes Special Silver Set. Collector anticipation for the set was high since it included two specially minted Roosevelt Dimes, which were only available within the set. The set contained one 2015 March of Dimes Proof Silver Dollar, one 2015 Reverse Proof Roosevelt Dime struck at the Philadelphia Mint, and one 2015 Proof Roosevelt Dime struck at the West Point Mint. All three coins were struck in 90% silver.
This represented the first time that the US Mint produced a Roosevelt Dime with a reverse proof finish. It represented only the second time that the Roosevelt Dime had been minted at the West Point Mint and carried the “W” mint mark. The first occasion was the 1996-W Roosevelt Dime issued for the 50th anniversary of the series.
The March of Dimes Special Silver Set was limited to a production of 75,000 units. Opening day sales for the product reached 52,540 units, reflecting the strong collector demand for the product. After the US Mint lifted the household ordering limit a week later, the sets quickly sold out.
Looking across all product options, the last reported sales for the March of Dimes Commemorative Silver Dollars reached 57,600 individual proofs, 24,742 individual uncirculated coins, and 74,430 of the special silver sets.
Coin Specifications
Designer: Paul Balan (obverse), Don Everhart (reverse)
Weight: 26.7300 g
Composition: 90% Silver (0.7736 ounces of silver)
Diameter: 38.1 mm
Maximum Authorized Mintage: 500,000
2015-P Uncirculated March of Dimes Silver Dollar
Pre-Issue Price: $43.95
Regular Price: $48.95
Final Mintage: 24,742
2015-P Proof March of Dimes Silver Dollar
Pre-Issue Price: $46.95
Regular Price: $51.95
Final Mintage: 132,030
