US Coins by Year

Why the date on a coin is not always the year it was struck

The date on a US coin is the date in the die. Dies were not always retired at the end of the year. In the early Mint, usable dies were kept in service until they wore out, which is why so many early coins show one date punched over another. The 1804 silver dollars were struck around 1834 with an old date. During the coin shortage of 1965 the Mint kept striking silver coins dated 1964. Quarters, halves and dollars struck in 1975 and 1976 all carry the dual date 1776-1976, so no 1975 coins of those denominations exist.

Reading the year counts

The number of coins listed for each year reflects how many mints were working and how many programs were running. Early decades show only a few issues a year because Philadelphia was the only mint and some denominations were skipped. Counts jump in 1838 when the branch mints opened and dip from 1965 to 1967, when no coins carried mint marks. The early 1930s show how little coinage a depressed economy needed. Modern years are much busier: 1999 brought the state quarters and 2009 added four Lincoln cent reverses and six territory quarters. Years with design changes also run high. 1909 includes both Indian Head and Lincoln cents, with and without the VDB initials. 1913 includes both types of Buffalo nickel.

When browsing a year, look at both the mintage and the number of mints. A year with low mintages across every denomination is usually a sign of economic trouble or a production change. Its coins are often worth a closer look.

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