1936-D 50C San Diego MS64 Certification #06009421, PCGS #9372

David Hall

The 1935-S and 1936-D San Diegos were minted in very large quantities (250,000 and 180,000 respectively), but most of the mintage of both issues was melted as unsold. The final distributed number for the 1935-S was 70,132 and for the 1936-D was 30,092. But you can't say that the California-Pacific Exposition didn't give it the old college try. The original issue price for the 1936-D was $1.50, then the Exposition raised the price to $3 in 1937, and then reduced the price to $1 in 1938 and then what remained unsold at that time was returned to the Mint to be melted.

Today, the 1936-D San Diego is one of the most readily available silver commemoratives of the classic 1892-1954 era, though it exists in "only" about 60% of the quanties that exist for the 1935-S...in virtually every Mint State grade. The typical 1936-D San Diego grades MS64 to MS66 and many very frosty Gems survive.