US Quarters Values & Mintages

Two bits and the first quarters

Americans counted quarters long before the Mint made one. The Spanish silver dollar was divided into eight reales, or bits, so two bits made a quarter dollar. The Coinage Act of 1792 authorized a quarter dollar, but demand was light because Spanish two-real coins already filled the role. The first US quarters appeared in 1796 and production stayed sporadic for decades, with gaps such as 1797 to 1803 and 1808 to 1814. Spanish coins remained legal tender until 1857.

Sizes and metals from 1796 to today

The early quarter was 27.5 millimeters across and 89.24% silver. When the Mint adopted the close collar in 1831, the coin shrank to about 24.3 millimeters. The fineness became 90% in 1837. In 1853 Congress reduced the weight of fractional silver to stop melting. Quarters of that year carry arrows beside the date and rays around the eagle. A small increase in 1873 set the weight at 6.25 grams.

That standard lasted until the Coinage Act of 1965, which replaced silver with a copper core clad in copper-nickel weighing 5.67 grams. The diameter has stayed at 24.26 millimeters. The quarter's edge carries 119 reeds.

How Washington came to the quarter

The Washington quarter was planned for 1932 as a tribute for the 200th anniversary of George Washington's birth. A design competition favored a portrait by sculptor Laura Gardin Fraser, but Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon chose John Flanagan's design instead. The coin was meant to be a one-year issue. It proved so popular that it became the regular quarter from 1934 onward, after a year without quarters in 1933.

Fraser's portrait finally reached the quarter in 2022 on the American Women Quarters, nearly ninety years after her original entry.

The commemorative quarter programs

The 50 State Quarters program of 1999 to 2008 issued five designs a year in the order the states ratified the Constitution or joined the Union. It turned millions of people into casual collectors and led to the 2009 District of Columbia and US Territories quarters, the America the Beautiful national park series of 2010 to 2021 and the American Women series. Each program moved the mint mark and date around the obverse in small ways, so check each one's page for details.

How to start collecting quarters

Modern commemorative quarters are the easiest entry point. You can fill a state, territory or park folder largely from change, then add the P and D versions of each design. The 2019 and 2020 W quarters are worth looking for in rolls.

For silver, the Washington quarter from 1932 to 1964 makes a manageable set. Its keys are the 1932-D with 436,800 struck and the 1932-S with 408,000, both commonly counterfeited by adding a mint mark. Earlier silver quarters such as Barber and Standing Liberty issues are best collected as type coins at first. Always check the date on a Standing Liberty quarter, since many are worn smooth and an unreadable date ends most collector interest.

Where to find the mint mark on a quarter

Early Draped Bust and Capped Bust quarters were all struck in Philadelphia and have no mint mark. Seated Liberty and Barber quarters carry it on the reverse below the eagle. Standing Liberty quarters place it on the obverse to the left of the date, beside Liberty's foot. Washington quarters from 1932 to 1964 have it on the reverse below the wreath. From 1968 it moved to the obverse to the right of Washington's ribbon. The state quarters of 1999 then moved the date to the reverse.

Frequently asked questions