½ Dollar 75th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam

Reverse

The Burnside Bridge, which was an important tactical objective of the battle.

Script: Latin

Lettering:
· SEVENTY · FIFTH · ANNIVERSARY · BATTLE · OF · ANTIETAM ·
· E · PLURIBUS · UNUM ·
· THE · BURNSIDE · BRIDGE ·
· SEPTEMBER 171862 ·
1937

Engraver: William Marks Simpson

Edge

Reeded

Comment

A commemorative half dollar was issued to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam, during which General McClellan thwarted General Lee’s invasion of Maryland. This followed a separate coin recently issued for the anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.

The designs for the coin were created by William Marks Simpson, who had also designed the recent commemorative issues for the Norfolk and Roanoke Island. All of these coins include an unusually large number of inscriptions.

A maximum of 50,000 pieces was authorized to be produced. The entire number was struck at the Philadelphia Mint and sent to the Washington County Historical Society, which offered the 1937 Antietam Half Dollars for $1.65 each. The general market for commemorative coins had declined by this time and sales were slow. Eventually, 32,000 pieces were returned to the mint for melting. Of the three Civil War-themed early commemoratives (Stone Mountain, Gettysburg, and Antietam), the final issue had the lowest mintage.

Authorization: Public Law 75-160

Interesting fact

Price

Date	Mintage	VG	F	VF	XF	AU	UNC
1937	18028	-	-	-	-	-	-

Values in the table are based on evaluations by sales realized on Internet platforms. They serve as an indication only for ½ Dollar (75th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam) 1937 coin.