The 1797 16 Star half dime is an important historical type, representing the furthest the first U.S. Mint pushed the short-lived plan to place one star on the obverse of our silver and gold coins for each state in the Union. The 16th star marked the 1796 entry of Tennessee, and made the obverse of silver and gold coins appear entirely too crowded. While 13 stars would become de rigueur in later years across all denominations, this policy was clearly in flux in 1797, as the year saw half dimes produced with 15 stars, 16 stars, and 13 stars.