When Franklin Roosevelt died in 1945 there was a strong public sentiment to place his portrait on a coin and in 1946 the Mercury Dime was replaced with the Roosevelt dime. Since the penny, nickel, and quarter already carried the likeness of former presidents and the dollar was not being struck at that time, the dime was the logical choice due to its wider circulation than the half. Interestingly enough, the bundle of sticks that had appeared on the reverse of the Mercury dime was retained here, although its likeness was redrawn.

The Roosevelt dime is still in production today and thus has enjoyed considerable longevity but like other denominations, was altered in composition in 1965. Beginning in that year, the silver was withdrawn from the coin, primarily because of the rising price of silver bullion and the coin was minted with a copper core overlaid with an alloy of 75% copper and 25% nickel, giving it a similar appearance, and in fact most people were unaware of the change. This ‘clad’ composition was also used in other coins and continues today to dominate the U.S. monetary mintage.