1907 H Canadian Penny
The 1907 H Canadian Penny is a one-cent coin struck for circulation with 800,000 made. Value band: collector premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1907
- Circulation mintage
- 800,000
- Value band
- Collector premium
- Composition
- Bronze (95.5% copper, 3% tin, 1.5% zinc)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1907 H Canadian Penny worth?
With 800,000 struck, the 1907 H Canadian Penny ranks 2nd lowest of the 151 Canadian cent dates and varieties we track. Collectors pay a collector premium even for worn examples. Sharp, uncirculated coins with no marks bring considerably more.
What would make yours worth more:
- Original red color rather than brown
- Sharp detail in the portrait and leaves
- A recognized variety for the date
- Professional grading for a key date
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1907 H Canadian Penny rare?
- Yes, by the standards of Canadian pennies. With 800,000 struck, the 1907 H Canadian Penny ranks 2nd lowest of the 151 Canadian cent dates and varieties we track.
- How many 1907 H Canadian pennies were made?
- 800,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1907 H Canadian Penny made of?
- Bronze (95.5% copper, 3% tin, 1.5% zinc). It weighs 5.67 g and measures 25.4 mm.
- Is the 1907 H Canadian Penny still legal tender?
- Yes. The Royal Canadian Mint stopped distributing cents in 2013, but they remain legal tender. Cash payments are rounded to the nearest five cents, so most pennies now sit in jars or go to banks.
The 1907 penny in context
The 1907-H marks the end of an era. It is the last Canadian cent struck at the Heaton mint in Birmingham and with only 800,000 made it has the lowest mintage of Edward VII's reign. London produced a larger run of 2.4 million cents with the same date, so the H marked coin makes up only about one in four of the year's total. Both share de Saulles's portrait and the same maple vine reverse.
Within a year Canada had its own mint. A branch of the Royal Mint opened in Ottawa in January 1908 and from then on cents were struck at home. Birmingham never made another Canadian cent. That history, together with the small mintage, makes the 1907-H the key date of the Edward VII series. It appears in old accumulations far less often than its London counterpart and when it does, it is usually well worn. Collectors building an Edwardian set tend to leave this date for last, simply because a nice one takes a while to turn up.
How to recognize it
George William de Saulles modeled Edward VII's crowned and robed bust, with EDWARDVS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR around it. The reverse keeps the maple vine border with ONE CENT and the date in the center and the small H sits below the date. The coin is 25.4 mm across and weighs 5.67 g, the same as Victoria's Dominion cents. Use a magnifier to find the H, because it is small and wear can soften it into the field. A 1907 with no H at all is the far more common London strike, so the mark is the whole story here.
1907 H Canadian Penny by the numbers
By the numbers, the 1907 H Canadian Penny ranks 2nd lowest of 151 Canadian cent dates and varieties from 1858 to 2012. The next scarcer is the 1858 Canadian Penny (421,000); the next more common is the 1890 H Canadian Penny (1 million).
For scale, the most common is the 1981 Round Canadian Penny with 1.21 billion, about 1512 times as many. The scarcest is the 1858 Canadian Penny with 421,000, 1.9 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1907 output was 5.1 times fewer than 1906 and 3 times fewer than 1908. Other 1907 cents: 1907 Canadian Penny (2.4 million).
Over the 1900s the Mint produced 32.9 million cents across 12 dates and varieties; the 1907 H Canadian Penny accounts for 2.4% of that.
What to check on your 1907 H Canadian Penny
- Confirm the variety: Heaton mint mark. Use a magnifier and compare with a reference picture before you assume you have the scarcer one.
- Check the color. Collectors describe copper cents as red, red-brown or brown; original red color is worth far more than toned or dull surfaces.
- Never clean it. Rubbing, polishing or dipping leaves fine scratches and an unnatural color that collectors spot at once.
- Look at the high points of the portrait and the lettering. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older cents.
As the lowest mintage cent of the reign, the 1907-H carries a collector premium even in worn grades and a strong one in fine condition or better. The London 1907 is an ordinary date by comparison. Because the difference rests on one small letter, added H marks are something to watch for. A genuine H matches the surrounding metal in color and wear and sits centered under the date. Corrosion and cleaning are common problems on Edwardian cents and a smooth, even brown coin with honest wear will usually hold more appeal than a bright one.
Edward VII large cents, 1902 to 1910
Queen Victoria died in January 1901 and cents dated 1901 still carry her portrait. Edward VII's effigy arrived on cents dated 1902. George William de Saulles modeled the crowned, robed bust, with the legend EDWARDVS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR around it. The coin itself did not change: still 25.4 mm, still 5.67 g of bronze with a maple vine around the date and denomination. If you hold a large cent and the portrait is a bearded king, you are in this short reign.
The big change of the decade was where the coins were made. Canada had relied on London and Birmingham since 1858, but in January 1908 a branch of the Royal Mint opened in Ottawa and from then on Canadian cents were struck at home. The last coins from the Heaton mint are the 1907-H cents, just 800,000 of them, the lowest figure of the reign. You can even see the switch in the records: up to 1907 the published mintages are round numbers, while from 1908 they become exact counts such as 2,401,506.
For most Edward VII dates, mintages run between two and five million, so they are available without much effort in worn condition. The 1907-H is the one to look for. Check below the date for the H, since a 1907 with no mark is the far more common London strike. The 1908, as the first Ottawa cent, gets attention from collectors who like firsts. Edward died in May 1910, but cents dated 1910 still show his portrait. Wear hits the crown, the beard and the leaves first, so judge condition there.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 1 cent |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1907 |
| Circulation mintage | 800,000 |
| Composition | Bronze (95.5% copper, 3% tin, 1.5% zinc) |
| Weight | 5.67 g |
| Diameter | 25.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Plain |
Other 1907 Canadian pennies
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 1907 Canadian Penny | 2,400,000 | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
How many 1907-H cents were made?
The records give 800,000, the lowest figure for any Edward VII cent. London struck another 2.4 million dated 1907 without a mint mark, so the H coins are a small share of the year.
Was the 1907-H the last Heaton cent?
Yes. Canada's own mint opened in Ottawa in January 1908 and from then on all Canadian cents were struck there. That makes the 1907-H the final Birmingham cent for Canada.
Mintage figures: Penny (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.