1937 Doubled Die Obverse

The 1937 Doubled Die Obverse is the prominent hub-doubled variety in the early Washington quarter run, attributed by PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, as FS-101 in the Cherrypickers' Guide reference system. The doubling shows clearly on IN GOD WE TRUST and on the date 1937, the result of a misaligned hubbing during die preparation when the working die received two impressions slightly offset from one another. The combined Philadelphia mintage for the date was 19.7 million pieces, but only a portion of that total came off the doubled die; surviving examples are scarce relative to the standard 1937 and almost always trade at a meaningful premium when properly attributed.

Authentication begins with a five-to-ten-power loupe on the obverse motto. Genuine hub doubling on this variety produces clear separation on the letters of IN GOD WE TRUST, particularly on TRUST, and visible secondary impressions in the digits of the date. Machine doubling, which is not collectible doubling, shows as a flat shelf-like effect rather than the rounded, fully-formed secondary image hub doubling produces. The distinction matters because raw "1937 DDO" listings include many machine-doubled coins that do not meet the variety standard. Buy this coin certified by PCGS or NGC, the Numismatic Guaranty Company, with the FS-101 designation noted on the holder. Strike on the variety follows the typical mid-1930s pattern of modest softness on hair detail and eagle breast feathers, so condition censuses skew toward MS64 and MS65 rather than the absolute top grades.

The variety has been a Cherrypickers' favorite for decades, and population growth has been steady but not rapid, which keeps the certified market thin. Realistic acquisition is a PCGS or NGC slabbed MS63 to MS65 sourced through a major auction house, with prices considerably higher than the standard 1937 in matching grades. Set collectors pursuing the complete Washington quarter variety run treat this coin as one of the cornerstone entries alongside the 1942-D and 1943 doubled dies and the 1950 over-mintmark pairs. For the broader story of John Flanagan's design and the series' production arc, see the Washington Quarter series history.