The U.S. Mint’s New 2026 9/11 Half Dollar Has a Story Most Collectors Haven’t Heard
Two 9/11 Privy Marks, One Historic Half Dollar: Inside the Mint’s 2026 ‘Never Forget’ Coin
Twenty-five years after September 11, 2001, the United States Mint has placed a message of remembrance on one of America’s circulating coin denominations.
The new 2026 9/11 Enduring Liberty Half Dollar carries a special privy mark with the date “9-11-01” surrounded by the words “NEVER FORGET.”
The Philadelphia Mint struck the circulating-quality coins for sale in 20-coin rolls and 100-coin bags. The Mint opened the limited pre-order window on September 10. It will close orders on September 25, 2026, at 3 p.m. Eastern Time. The Mint expects shipping to begin December 3. Prices currently range from $40 to $100, depending on the product.
Yet the story behind this half dollar goes much deeper than a new privy mark.
The coin brings together three remarkable anniversaries. The United States marks its 250th anniversary in 2026. The country also observes 25 years since the September 11 attacks. Meanwhile, the half dollar carries Liberty for a single year before the Kennedy design returns in 2027.
That combination gives the 2026 issue a place in U.S. coinage history that no future date can duplicate.
A Half Dollar Made for Remembrance
The Mint created the special Philadelphia issue to commemorate the lives lost in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the February 26, 1993, World Trade Center bombing.
Its privy mark makes that purpose unmistakable.
Inside the mark appears 9-11-01. Around it, the Mint placed the words NEVER FORGET. The Mint describes the inscription as a pledge to remember the Americans whose loss, sacrifice, and heroism became inseparable from September 11.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the special half dollars as symbols of the honor and bravery of the victims, survivors, and first responders.
U.S. Mint Director Paul Hollis also emphasized the coin’s educational role. He said broader distribution gives Americans a physical reminder of how the nation came together and provides a way to teach younger generations about events that occurred before many of them were born.
That last point gives this coin an unusual purpose. It does more than commemorate an anniversary. The Mint intends it to carry memory forward.
The First 2,983 Coins Told a Different Part of the Story
The story actually began before the public roll-and-bag offering.
On August 21, 2026, the United States Mint presented 2,983 special-issue Enduring Liberty Half Dollars to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York.
The number carries enormous significance.
The Memorial honors 2,977 people killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks and six people killed in the February 26, 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Together, they total 2,983 victims.
Therefore, the Mint’s presentation of exactly 2,983 coins directly mirrors the number of names the Memorial preserves.
However, collectors should note an important difference.
Those presentation coins do not carry the same privy inscription as the Philadelphia rolls and bags.
The West Point Mint struck the 2,983 presentation pieces with a privy mark containing “9-11-01” surrounded by “ALWAYS REMEMBER.” The Mint delivered those coins to the Memorial ahead of the 25th anniversary observance.
By contrast, the Philadelphia coins now available to the public carry NEVER FORGET around the same date.
That creates an intriguing numismatic distinction within an already historic one-year coin program:
West Point: “ALWAYS REMEMBER.”
Philadelphia: “NEVER FORGET.”
For collectors, that distinction becomes one of the most important details in understanding the 2026 9/11 Enduring Liberty Half Dollar story.
Why the Enduring Liberty Half Dollar Already Stands Apart
Even without the 9/11 privy mark, the 2026 Enduring Liberty Half Dollar represents a major break in the modern half-dollar series.
The Mint replaced the familiar Kennedy design for 2026 with an entirely new Liberty theme. According to the Mint, this marks the half dollar’s first design change in more than 60 years. The Kennedy portrait returns in 2027.
More importantly, Liberty herself has returned.
The Walking Liberty Half Dollar ended in 1947. The Franklin Half Dollar followed in 1948. Then the Kennedy Half Dollar arrived in 1964. Thus, 2026 brings Lady Liberty back to the circulating half-dollar denomination after an absence of nearly eight decades. The Mint itself notes that 2026 marks Liberty’s first appearance on a circulating coin since 1947.
However, this Liberty does not look backward.
She looks forward.
Liberty Faces the Future
Former U.S. Mint Artistic Infusion Program artist Donna Weaver designed the obverse. Mint Medallic Artist John P. McGraw sculpted it.
Instead of showing the entire Statue of Liberty, the design moves close to her face. Her gaze extends outward, creating an impression of determination and forward movement.
The inscriptions read:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
IN GOD WE TRUST
1776 ~ 2026
The dual date directly connects the nation’s founding year with its Semiquincentennial. On the special Philadelphia issue, the 9-11-01 / NEVER FORGET privy adds another date to that historical conversation.
Three moments consequently converge on one small piece of metal: 1776, 2001, and 2026.
That may become the most compelling visual story of the coin.
Passing the Torch to Another Generation
Artist Beth Zaiken designed the reverse, while Mint Medallic Artist Darla Jackson sculpted it.
Here, Liberty passes her torch to another generation. The flame trails behind it, which gives the scene a sense of movement.
The inscriptions read:
E PLURIBUS UNUM
HALF DOLLAR
KNOWLEDGE IS THE ONLY GUARDIAN OF TRUE LIBERTY
That final inscription comes from James Madison.
Madison used the phrase in an 1825 letter while discussing the “advancement & diffusion of Knowledge.” The National Archives also identifies the wording as an 1825 Madison statement.
On the 2026 coin, the quotation gains another layer of meaning.
The reverse depicts one generation physically handing Liberty’s torch to another. The inscription argues that knowledge protects liberty. Meanwhile, the 9/11 privy asks future generations to remember an event that increasingly lies outside their own lived experience.
The imagery, inscription, and privy therefore reinforce one another.
One Design, One Year
Congress authorized the special 2026 circulating coin designs through the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, Public Law 116-330. President Donald J. Trump signed the legislation on January 13, 2021.
The standard Enduring Liberty Half Dollar entered circulation at the beginning of 2026. Philadelphia and Denver manufacture the regular non-privy versions. The Mint will use the special design for 2026 only.
That one-year status matters.
Unlike a normal series that develops through multiple dates and mintmarks, Enduring Liberty exists inside a single anniversary year. The 9/11 versions then create identifiable branches within that already limited timeline.
For future collectors, 2026 will therefore require more explanation than simply “Philadelphia or Denver.”
The privy matters. So does the wording.
- 2026 9/11 Enduring Liberty Half Dollar Specifications
Denomination: Half Dollar
- Year: 2026
- Composition: 8.33% nickel, balance copper
- Weight: 11.340 grams
- Diameter: 1.205 inches / 30.61 mm
- Thickness: 2.15 mm
- Edge: Reeded
- Reeds: 150
- Mint: Philadelphia
- Mintmark: P
- Privy Mark: 9-11-01 encircled by NEVER FORGET
- Finish: Circulating quality
- Public Packaging: 20-coin roll; 100-coin bag
- Pre-Order Window: September 10-25, 2026, closing at 3 p.m. ET
- Expected Shipping: December 3, 2026
- Mintage Limit: None listed
- Product Limit: None listed
- Household Order: Limit None listed
The Mint confirms the composition, weight, diameter, Philadelphia origin, P mintmark, privy wording, packaging, ordering period, and current limits. Its general half-dollar specifications also list the 2.15 mm thickness and 150-reed edge.
More Than Another Semiquincentennial Coin
The United States Mint has produced many coins to mark anniversaries. Yet the 2026 9/11 Enduring Liberty Half Dollar occupies unusual territory.
It celebrates no victory.
Instead, it asks Americans to remember loss, courage, sacrifice, and national resilience.
Its design looks toward the future. Its reverse passes Liberty’s torch forward. Madison’s words connect liberty with knowledge. Finally, the privy fixes one date onto the coin that needs no explanation for Americans who lived through it: 9-11-01.
Twenty-five years later, however, millions of younger Americans have no personal memory of that morning.
That makes the coin’s central message more consequential with every passing year.
Never Forget.
And in one of the most unusual numismatic details of the entire 2026 program, another 2,983 Enduring Liberty Half Dollars already carry a companion message:
Always Remember.
