ork County, Maine, Tercentenary half dollar From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigationJump to search York County, Maine, Tercentenary half dollar United States Value 50 cents (0.50 US dollars) Mass 12.5 g Diameter 30.61 mm (1.20 in) Thickness 2.15 mm (0.08 in) Edge Reeded Composition 90.0% silver 10.0% copper Silver 0.36169 troy oz Years of minting 1936 Mintage 25,015 including 15 pieces for the Assay Commission Mint marks None, all pieces struck at Philadelphia Mint without mint mark Obverse York County obverse.jpeg Design Brown's Garrison Designer Walter H. Rich Design date 1936 Reverse York County reverse.jpeg Design York County Seal Designer Walter H. Rich Design date 1936 The York County, Maine, Tercentenary half dollar is a 50-cent commemorative coin minted in 1936 to commemorate the tercentenary (300th anniversary) of the founding of York County. The obverse shows Brown's Garrison, the fort around which York County was formed, while the reverse depicts the county's arms. A commemorative coin craze in 1936 saw some coins authorized by the United States Congress that were of mainly local significance; the York County issue was one of these. Legislation permitting the half dollar passed Congress without opposition in the first half of 1936. Maine artist Walter H. Rich designed the issue; his work has garnered mixed praise and dislike from numismatic authors. The committee in charge of selling the coins to the public asked that the maximum issue of 30,000 coins be struck, but for uncertain reasons the Philadelphia Mint struck only 25,000 for public sale. Less than 19,000 sold by 1937, more than half to Mainers; the rest were sold in the 1950s. As of 2020, the York County half dollar catalogs for around $200, depending on condition. Contents 1 Background and inception 2 Legislation 3 Preparation 4 Design 5 Release, distributing and collecting 6 Notes 7 References 8 Sources 9 External links Back ground and inception The first European settlement in what is now Maine was at Saco in 1631, where the fortification known as Brown's Garrison was built. In 1636, York County was formed, the first and southernmost county in Maine and one of the oldest political units in the United States. Sparked by low-mintage issues which appreciated in value, the market for United States commemorative coins spiked in 1936. Until 1954, the entire mintage of such issues was sold at face value by the government to a group authorized by Congress, who then tried to sell the coins at a profit to the public. The new pieces then enter