1814 Capped Bust Dime

The story of the 1814

Philadelphia hadn't struck the Capped Bust Dime since 1811. When it came back in 1814, it made 421,500. After that, Philadelphia didn't make another until 1820.

No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1814 you find is from Philadelphia. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1825 (410,000) and the 1823 (440,000).

Across Philadelphia's 20 Capped Bust Dime issues, the hardest to find is the 1809 with 51,065 made. The 1814 is on the scarcer side of the middle.

More on the 1814

The 1814 dime was struck in a year of war. British troops burned Washington in August 1814 and soon afterward banks outside New England stopped paying out gold and silver. Even so, the Mint delivered 421,500 dimes, more than three times the combined total of 1809 and 1811. No dimes would follow until 1820.

Three varieties are listed. The Small Date and Large Date differ in the size of the numerals, which were punched into each die by hand. The third, known as STATESOFAMERICA, comes from a reverse die on which the words of the legend were set with no spaces between them. Read the top of the reverse slowly and you will see it. The same feature appears on some 1820 dimes. The 1814 is the most available of the three early dates of the type, though it is still scarce and carries a collector premium in any grade. Most survivors are worn and many have been cleaned, so original surfaces deserve a close look.

John Reich's dime arrives (1809 to 1814)

No dimes were struck in 1808. In 1809 Assistant Engraver John Reich's Capped Bust design appeared. Liberty wears a cloth cap with a band reading LIBERTY. On the reverse an eagle with a shield holds an olive branch and three arrows, with E PLURIBUS UNUM on a scroll above. For the first time a dime carried its value, 10 C. The coin was struck on a screw press in an open collar, so it measures about 18.8 millimeters across.

Mintages were small. Philadelphia struck 51,065 dimes in 1809, the first year and a key date. None were made in 1810. The 65,180 coins of 1811 were all struck from an old die with the date 1811 punched over 1809. No dimes were made in 1812 or 1813. Production jumped in 1814 to 421,500. The 1814 comes in Small Date and Large Date forms and in a variety where the words run together as STATESOFAMERICA on the reverse.

Spanish and Mexican silver coins still circulated widely and depositors of silver at the Mint usually asked for larger coins, which explains the gaps. For a dime of these years, check the date carefully. On an 1811 you should see traces of the 09 under the 11. On an 1814 read the reverse legend for spacing. Survivors are usually worn and many have been cleaned.