1911 Liberty Head "V" Nickel

The story of the 1911

Output at Philadelphia climbed to 39,559,372 in 1911, from 30 million the year before. The next year it made 26 million (1912).

No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1911 you find is from Philadelphia.

Of the 32 Liberty Head "V" Nickels Philadelphia struck between 1883 and 1913, none was made in bigger numbers. The scarcest Philadelphia issue is the 1913 at 5. No Liberty Head "V" Nickel of the 1910s 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.