1907 Liberty Head "V" Nickel

The story of the 1907

Philadelphia made 39,214,800 in 1907, about the same as the year before. In 1908 the figure was 23 million.

No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1907 you find is from Philadelphia.

Across Philadelphia's 32 Liberty Head "V" Nickel issues, the hardest to find is the 1913 with 5 made. The 1907 is one of the easier ones. No Liberty Head "V" Nickel of the 1900s had a bigger run.

The nickel-in-the-slot era (1900 to 1911)

Demand for nickels grew rapidly in the 1900s with streetcar fares, pay telephones and coin operated machines that took five cents. Production passed 26 million in 1900, reached 38.6 million in 1906 and topped 39 million in 1907 and 1911, the highest figure of the series. Nickelodeon theaters, named after their five-cent admission, spread across the country in these years.

Because so many were made, coins from this period are the easiest Liberty Head nickels to find in every grade. Strikes are usually better than in the 1880s. Many show full corn ears and a clear LIBERTY. Uncirculated examples were saved in larger numbers as coin collecting grew, though original luster without spots is less common. These dates are a practical place to start a set or to choose a single type coin.

These are the dates that turn up most often in old jars and family collections. Yearly mintages ran from about 11 million to nearly 40 million, so worn examples are easy to find and carry only a small premium. The coins worth setting aside are the ones with a full, readable LIBERTY and original surfaces, plus anything that looks uncirculated.

Elsewhere in US coinage in 1907

Augustus Saint-Gaudens' double eagle and Indian Head eagle replaced the Liberty Head designs. The first double eagles were struck in very high relief, which required several blows of the press, so the relief was lowered later in the year. President Theodore Roosevelt had the motto "In God We Trust" left off both coins.