The topic of what makes a coin snatched from circulation scarcer than others, and the impact of public hoarding, was broached by Ray Young in “The squirrel instinct: Why Some Rarities Are Common and Some Commoners Are Rare” in the June 1965 issue of Coins magazine. Young explores some of the dates that, during his day, were considered scarce. The high price of silver in later years meant the disappearance of all silver coins from circulation well beyond any thought of low mintages. Therefore, some of the dates mentioned by Young may have been scarce in circulation at the time this article was written but today carry little or no premium over their counterparts. Still, the “how and why” some coins disappear from circulation quicker than others during that period of regular pocket-change checking are worth noting.
“Sooner or later almost every collector wonders why some coins, minted in large quantities, are scarce,” Young wrote. “On the other hand, why are some pieces common although not too
