A left-facing profile of Roosevelt occupies most of the obverse space. Inside the smooth rim in front of Roosevelt's face is the word LIBERTY. IN GOD WE TRUST in smaller letters is positioned below the chin. The date is squeezed into the space inside the rim and beneath the neck truncation, to the right of the designer's initials JS, which are just below and oriented parallel to the edge of the neckline.
Completely encircling inside the reverse smooth rim are the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and (slightly larger letters) ONE DIME, the two phrases separated by centered dots. In the center is a flaming torch, flanked by an olive branch to the left and an oak branch to the right. Forming a horizontal line through the base of the torch and both branches is a partitioned E PLURIBUS UNUM, with centering dots separating the three Latin words.
The continual rise in the price of silver bullion in the early 1960s caused the Mint to replace the silver in all circulating coins with a copper-nickel clad composition, effective with 1965-dated coins.
Mintage:
| Philadelphia | Special Mint Set |
| 1,652,140,570 | 2,360,000 |