1897-O Barber Dime

The story of the 1897-O

Output at New Orleans climbed to 666,000 in 1897, from 610,000 the year before. The next year it made 2.1 million (1898-O).

The other mints made far more that year: 1897 alone came to 11 million, roughly 16 for every 1897-O. If you're checking a pile of 1897 coins, the O is the one to look for. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1895 (690,000) and the 1894-O (720,000).

Only the 1895-O and the 1896-O have a lower mintage among New Orleans's 17 Barber Dimes. Within the 1890s it's 5th smallest of 24, between the 1896-O (610,000) and the 1895 (690,000).

More on the 1897-O

New Orleans struck 666,000 dimes in 1897, a semi-key in a year when Philadelphia jumped to 10,868,533 and San Francisco made 1,342,844. The contrast is striking: an 1897 with no mint mark is common, while the O version is one of the scarcer dates in the series.

Most 1897-O dimes are heavily worn. Uncirculated pieces are scarce. As with other New Orleans Barber dimes, the strike is often soft, so detail on the wreath can be weak even on a lightly worn coin. Grade from LIBERTY on the headband and the hair. Check that the O is clear and well formed. A worn example with a readable date and mint mark carries a collector premium. The coin is a good example of why a Barber dime collection is built by mint mark as much as by date. If you have several 1897 dimes, sort them by mint mark first and set aside any with an O.

Hard times and the rarest dimes (1894 to 1897)

Demand for new coins was weak during the depression of the mid-1890s and Barber dime mintages show it. Philadelphia struck 1,330,000 in 1894, 690,000 in 1895 and 2,000,000 in 1896 before rebounding to 10,868,533 in 1897. New Orleans never reached a million in these four years, with 720,000 in 1894, 440,000 in 1895, 610,000 in 1896 and 666,000 in 1897. San Francisco made 1,120,000 in 1895 and 1,342,844 in 1897, so its coins of those years are scarce but not keys.

This is where the rarities of the series cluster. The 1895-O, with 440,000 struck, is the key among regular business strikes and is usually found heavily worn. The 1895 is the scarcest Philadelphia date. The 1894-O, 1896-O, 1896-S (575,056) and 1897-O are semi-keys. Above them all sits the 1894-S, of which San Francisco struck just 24 pieces in proof format for reasons that have never been fully explained. Only about ten are believed to survive.

Scarce dates attract altered and counterfeit coins, so a key date from these years deserves a slow, careful look. Check the mint mark under magnification for a clean outline, the right size and no seam where it meets the field. Then compare the date digits with each other for matching style and spacing. Worn examples of the key dates still carry a collector premium, while the Philadelphia 1897 is a common date that trades close to metal value in low grades.