1945-S

San Francisco struck 41,920,000 Mercury Dimes in 1945, marking the final year of San Francisco Mercury Dime production. With Franklin D. Roosevelt's death in April 1945, the mint began preparations for the Roosevelt Dime which debuted in 1946 to honor the late president. The 1945-S thus closes the San Francisco run on Weinman's 30-year-old design. The 41,920,000 total includes both standard-punch S coinage and the smaller Micro S variety, the latter covered as its own listing. Most 1945-S dimes circulated heavily through the postwar years, and Mint State examples come from rolls preserved during the silver speculation era of the 1960s.

The Weinman design from 1916 carries Liberty in her winged Phrygian cap on the obverse with LIBERTY around the top and the date at the lower right of the truncation. The reverse displays the fasces with olive branch and the standard knob-end S mintmark to the left of the fasces base. The coin weighs 2.5 grams of 90% silver and 10% copper alloy, measures 17.9 mm in diameter, and has a reeded edge. Authenticators verify the S punch as the standard 1945-S style rather than the smaller Micro S punch used on a portion of San Francisco production this year. Central horizontal bands on the fasces must show complete separation for the PCGS or NGC Full Bands designation. Strike quality is generally good and Full Bands examples are available with reasonable searching.

The standard 1945-S is affordable through MS-66 Full Bands, stepping up at MS-67 and above. Heritage Auctions has shown consistent demand for top-graded examples. Population reports updated regularly by Professional Coin Grading Service and Numismatic Guaranty Company give the best read on conditional scarcity by grade. Roll-quantity finds from estate consignments occasionally bring fresh material to the market, though such groups are increasingly uncommon. The Mercury Dime series history offers broader context for the closing year.