1936 Washington Quarter

More than 50 million Washington quarters were struck in 1936, helping to bring the then four-year-old design into greater prominence in circulation, though plenty of Standing Liberty quarters continued to show up in purses and pocket change during the mid 1930s. 1936 marked another important occasion for Washington quarters, and that’s the first issuance of a proof Washington quarter. Struck in concurrence with the first modern proof sets, the 1936 proof Washington quarter is an issue that die-hard Washington quarter enthusiasts will include in their series sets. However, most coin collectors assembling a Washington quarter set will simply stick to collecting regular-issue examples.

Here’s a look at the mintages and values of the 1936 Washington quarters:

• 1936, 41,300,000 minted; $8

• 1936 proof, 3,837; $2,000

• 1936-D, 5,374,000; $60

• 1936-S, 3,828,000; $18

*Values are for coins in a grade of Extremely Fine-40, unless otherwise stated.

The 1936-D issue is a particularly tough coin to find in the Mint State grades, as prices for uncirculated specimens of that coin will reflect; expect to pay nearly $1,000 for an example in MS-63. The other two regular-issues, on the other hand, are far more affordable. The San Francisco issue costs about $150 in MS-63, and a Philadelphia example in that same grade can be bought for around $40.