1925 Lexington-Concord Half Dollar: What’s It Worth?

Specifications

Denomination: Half dollar
Designer: Obverse: Chester Beach (after Daniel Chester French); reverse: Chester Beach
Weight: 12.5 g
Diameter: 30.61 mm
Edge: Reeded

A one-year 1925 issue for the 150th anniversary of Lexington and Concord: Daniel Chester French’s Minute Man on the obverse, Lexington’s Old Belfry on the reverse — catalogued in the hundreds of dollars (Wikipedia).

History

Members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation introduced legislation in 1924 for a half dollar honoring the 150th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, which opened the Revolutionary War. The bill passed both houses and was signed by President Calvin Coolidge (Wikipedia).
Chester Beach designed the coin, but he had to satisfy rival committees from both Lexington and Concord, and the Commission of Fine Arts approved the design only reluctantly, feeling Beach had been given poor material to work with. The obverse adapts Daniel Chester French’s 1874 Minute Man statue in Concord; the reverse shows the Old Belfry in Lexington (Wikipedia).
The coins sold for $1 at the anniversary celebrations in Lexington and Concord and at banks across New England. Although just over half of the 300,000 authorized mintage was struck, almost all the coins minted were sold — 162,099 pieces including 99 for the Assay Commission, with a net distribution of 162,013 after 86 were returned (Wikipedia; GreatCollections).
Sometimes called the “Patriot half dollar” from its obverse legend, it remains a one-year type with no mintmark — every piece was struck at Philadelphia (Wikipedia). This entry is part of the Classic U.S. Commemoratives series.

What is it worth

The 2018 deluxe edition of the Red Book listed the Lexington-Concord half dollar from $75 to $700 depending on condition (Wikipedia).
Certified mint-state examples are the standard market: GreatCollections has handled the issue in grades from MS-62 through MS-65, with gem examples bringing the strongest bids (GreatCollections).

What drives the premium

Grade: as a widely saved souvenir issue, the premium sits almost entirely in the uncirculated grades, rising steeply at MS-65 and above (Wikipedia; GreatCollections).
Originality: with nearly the whole mintage sold directly to the public in 1925, attractive original surfaces are the norm — impaired or cleaned coins trade at a discount (GreatCollections).

How to identify the valuable variety

There are no varieties or mintmarks to chase — all 1925 Lexington-Concord halves were struck at Philadelphia without a mintmark, so attribution is simply a matter of confirming the type (Wikipedia).
Confirm the legends: the obverse reads UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, CONCORD MINUTEMAN, IN GOD WE TRUST, and PATRIOT HALF DOLLAR; the reverse reads LEXINGTON-CONCORD SESQUICENTENNIAL, OLD BELFRY, LEXINGTON, HALF DOLLAR, and the dual dates 1775–1925 (Wikipedia).

Specifications

Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper (Wikipedia)
Weight: 12.5 g (Wikipedia)
Silver content: 0.36169 troy oz (Wikipedia)
Diameter: 30.61 mm (Wikipedia)
Edge: Reeded (Wikipedia)
Alignment: Not verified in consulted references
Designers: Obverse: Chester Beach (after Daniel Chester French); reverse: Chester Beach (Wikipedia)
Mint: Philadelphia — no mintmark (Wikipedia)

Collector notes

Mintage context: 300,000 authorized; 162,099 struck including 99 assay pieces; 162,013 net distributed — nearly the entire production sold to the public (Wikipedia; GreatCollections).
Because the issue sold out essentially at release, it is readily available in mint state but genuinely scarce with heavy wear — the opposite profile of many later commemoratives (Wikipedia).