1870 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1870

The Carson City Mint in Nevada began striking coins in 1870, using silver from the Comstock Lode. Its "CC" mint mark is now among the most sought after.

How many coins were made in 1870

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 13,798,307 coins dated 1870 across 14 issues. That is 49% fewer than in 1869 (27,059,800). In 1871 the figure fell to 12,196,400.

It was the smallest year since 1850.

By mint: Philadelphia 12,678,350 (92%, down from 25,647,800), San Francisco 1,057,000 (7.7%, down from 1,412,000) and Carson City 62,957 (0.46%, new this year).

Those coins held about 683,412 troy ounces of pure silver and 450 troy ounces of gold.

1870 coins by denomination

Cents: 5,275,000 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Indian Head Cent, down 18% on 1869.

Nickels: 4,806,000 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Shield Nickel, down 71% on 1869.

Dimes: 520,500 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Dime, down 26% on 1869. The scarcest is the 1870-S (50,000) and the most plentiful the 1870 (470,500).

Quarters: 94,740 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Quarter, up 3% on 1869. The scarcest is the 1870-CC (8,340) and the most plentiful the 1870 (86,400).

Half Dollars: 1,693,517 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Half Dollar, up 17% on 1869. The scarcest is the 1870-CC (54,617) and the most plentiful the 1870-S (1,004,000).

Gold Coins: 9,300 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Gold Dollar, up 58% on 1869. The scarcest is the 1870-S (3,000) and the most plentiful the 1870 (6,300).

Odd Denominations: 1,399,250 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Two-Cent Piece, Three-Cent Silver and Seated Liberty Half Dime, down 30% on 1869. The scarcest is the 1870 (3,000) and the most plentiful the 1870 (861,250).

Every 1870 circulation issue at a glance

• 1870-S Gold Dollar: 3,000 struck, 7th lowest of 75 in the series, down from 13,000 in 1860.
• 1870 Three-Cent Silver: 3,000 struck, 2nd lowest of 23 in the series, down from 4,500 in 1869.
• 1870 Gold Dollar: 6,300 struck, 26th lowest of 75 in the series, similar to 1869.
• 1870-CC Seated Liberty Quarter: 8,340 struck, 4th lowest of 108 in the series.
• 1870-S Seated Liberty Dime: 50,000 struck, 17th lowest of 116 in the series, down from 450,000 in 1869.
• 1870-CC Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 54,617 struck, 16th lowest of 116 in the series.
• 1870 Seated Liberty Quarter: 86,400 struck, 37th lowest of 108 in the series, up from 16,000 in 1869.
• 1870 Seated Liberty Dime: 470,500 struck, 53rd lowest of 116 in the series, up from 256,000 in 1869.
• 1870 Seated Liberty Half Dime: 535,000 struck, 29th lowest of 70 in the series, up from 208,000 in 1869.
• 1870 Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 634,900 struck, 54th lowest of 116 in the series, down from 795,900 in 1869.
• 1870 Two-Cent Piece: 861,250 struck, 3rd lowest of 9 in the series, down from 1,546,500 in 1869.
• 1870-S Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 1,004,000 struck, more than 60% of the series' 116 issues, up from 656,000 in 1869.

The 2 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Indian Head Cent: Bronze cents and the L on the ribbon

The popularity of thin bronze Civil War tokens showed that people would accept a lighter cent. The Act of April 22, 1864 changed the cent to bronze, cutting the weight from 4.67 to 3.11 grams. The Mint struck both copper-nickel and bronze cents that year. Later in 1864 Longacre added his initial L to the ribbon behind the neck. The 1864 bronze with L is a scarce variety.

Once the war ended, minor coins flooded back into circulation. An 1871 law let banks redeem surplus cents. Production fell from about 10 million in 1868 to just over 5 million in 1870 and about 4 million in 1871 and 1872, which makes those three dates scarce today. Bronze coins of this era tone from red to brown. Survivors with full diamonds and a complete LIBERTY are prized.

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Shield Nickel: High output then a glut

With the rays gone, the Mint struck nearly 29 million nickels in each of 1867 and 1868 and another 16.4 million in 1869. The market was soon flooded with minor coins. In 1871 Congress allowed the redemption of surplus nickels and cents, sending large numbers back to the Treasury. Production fell to 4.8 million in 1870 and to only 561,000 in 1871, the low point of this period and a scarce date today.

The hard alloy still caused trouble, so many coins from these years show die cracks, clashing or a weak strike on the leaves and the cross. Repunched dates are common. Specialists attribute them by die. The 1872 recovered somewhat at 6 million. Survivors from 1868 and 1869 are plentiful, often worn to Fine or Very Fine, while uncirculated 1871 nickels are hard to find.

Production was huge at first because the nickel was meant to replace paper five-cent notes in circulation. Within a few years banks and merchants had more nickels than they needed and the Mint had no easy way to take the excess back, so output fell sharply after 1869. Coins of these years often show die cracks and weak stars, because the hard copper-nickel alloy wore dies out quickly.

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Seated Liberty Quarter: IN GOD WE TRUST joins the reverse

In 1866 the motto IN GOD WE TRUST was added on a ribbon above the eagle. Silver still did not circulate in the East, so Philadelphia struck only 16,800 business strikes that year and similar small numbers through 1869. San Francisco carried more of the load, but even its mintages stayed below 100,000 in every year of the period.

The Carson City Mint in Nevada struck its first quarters in 1870. The 1870-CC (8,340 struck) and the 1871-CC (10,890) are among the toughest dates in the whole Seated series. The 1872-CC, with 22,850 made, is scarce as well. Survivors from this period are often well worn, cleaned or damaged because many circulated for years in the mining West. Philadelphia proofs of 600 to 1,000 a year are the usual way collectors fill these dates in high grade.

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Seated Liberty Half Dollar: Motto above the eagle and Carson City

IN GOD WE TRUST was added on a scroll above the eagle in 1866. San Francisco struck both the old and new reverses that year. The 1866-S without motto, with 60,000 made, is scarce. Philadelphia mintages ran from about 418,000 to 1.2 million a year, while San Francisco often struck more than one million.

The Carson City Mint struck its first halves in 1870. The 1870-CC, with 54,617 made, is the key. Carson City halves of 1871 and 1872 are scarce in all grades. Many Nevada-struck halves circulated in the mining West and survive heavily worn, scratched or cleaned. Mint state CC halves of these years are major rarities, so most collectors settle for a sound Fine or Very Fine coin.

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Gold Dollar: Wartime suspension and tiny mintages

Banks stopped paying out gold at the end of 1861 and gold coins disappeared from eastern circulation. After a large 1862 mintage of 1,361,355, Philadelphia struck only a few thousand gold dollars a year through most of the 1860s and 1870s. Gold remained at a premium over paper money until specie payments resumed at the start of 1879.

Exceptions were 1873 and 1874, when production rose to 125,100 and 198,800. The 1873 comes with closed 3 and open 3 dates. The 1875, with only 400 business strikes and 20 proofs, is the lowest mintage of the type. The 1870-S, 3,000 struck, is the only San Francisco gold dollar of the period. Survivors from these years are scarce in any grade.

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Two-Cent Piece: Declining demand and the proof-only finale

Once copper-nickel three-cent pieces and nickels were in circulation, demand for the two-cent piece fell year after year, from 2,938,750 in 1867 to 721,250 in 1871. The 1867 doubled die obverse shows clear doubling in the motto. Mintages for 1868 to 1870 continued the slide. Proofs were made every year of the period in runs of several hundred.

The 1872 had only 65,000 business strikes and is scarce. In 1873 only proofs were made, with closed 3 originals and open 3 restrikes, before the Coinage Act of 1873 abolished the denomination. Many two-cent pieces were later redeemed and melted, so circulated coins of the later dates are much scarcer than the early ones. The 1872 is also often counterfeited by altering a common date.

As cents returned to circulation after the war, demand for the two-cent piece fell year after year, from about 3 million in 1867 to around 65,000 in 1872. The 1867 doubled die obverse and the 1869/8 overdate are known varieties. In 1873 only proofs were struck, in Closed 3 and Open 3 versions and the Coinage Act of that year ended the denomination.

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Three-Cent Silver: Hoarding and the proof-only years

When silver was hoarded during the Civil War, the three-cent silver stopped circulating. Philadelphia struck only 21,000 in 1863 and no more than 22,000 a year after that, falling to 1,000 in 1872. The copper-nickel three-cent piece of 1865 took over its role in commerce. Proof sets of these years included the coin.

Proofs were struck each year, often in numbers close to or above the business strikes, so proofs of these dates are easier to find than circulation strikes. The 1873 was made only as a proof with a closed 3, after which the Coinage Act of 1873 ended the denomination. Many business strikes of these years were later melted. Worn examples of the late dates are rare and are sometimes mistaken for impaired proofs.

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Seated Liberty Dime: Slow recovery and Carson City joins

Silver still did not return to circulation in the East after the war, so Philadelphia mintages stayed modest. It struck 464,000 in 1868, 256,000 in 1869 and 470,500 in 1870. San Francisco made 260,000, 450,000 and then only 50,000 in 1870, a key date of the series. Production rose again in 1871 and 1872, with Philadelphia reaching 2,395,500 in 1872.

The Carson City Mint in Nevada, built near the silver of the Comstock Lode, struck its first dimes in 1871. Only 20,100 were made that year and 35,480 in 1872. Both are major rarities. CC dimes circulated in mining towns where few people saved coins, so most survivors are well worn and many have scratches, corrosion or old cleaning. A problem-free example of either date is very rare.

Specialists also list an 1872 doubled die reverse. For most finds, though, the mint mark is the thing to check. Look near the bow of the wreath for S or CC and use a magnifier to make sure the letters match genuine punches and were not added to a Philadelphia coin. Philadelphia struck 1,000 proofs in 1870, 960 in 1871 and 950 in 1872. Those proofs let collectors own these dates in high grade. The CC mint mark, like the others, was punched into the dies at Philadelphia before they were shipped west.

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Seated Liberty Half Dime: The last half dimes

Philadelphia struck 88,600 half dimes in 1868 and 208,000 in 1869, then 535,000 in 1870, 1,873,000 in 1871 and 2,947,000 in 1872. San Francisco made between 161,000 and 837,000 a year, except in 1870. No S half dimes were reported for that year, but a single 1870-S turned up in 1978 and is still the only one known. The 1872-S comes with the mint mark above the bow and below it. The 1871-S, with 161,000 struck, has the lowest regular S mintage of these years.

Since 1866 the copper-nickel five-cent piece had been doing the half dime's job at a lower cost. The Coinage Act of 1873 ended the silver half dime. Philadelphia struck 712,000 in that final year and San Francisco 324,000. Many half dimes were later melted. With the half dime and the three-cent silver both gone, the dime became the smallest American silver coin. Proofs ran between 600 and 1,000 a year in these final years.

Half dimes of these last years are mostly common in worn grades. The 1868 and 1869 are the scarcer Philadelphia dates, with 88,600 and 208,000 struck. For the 1872-S, check where the S sits relative to the bow. All coins of the period weigh 1.24 grams and measure 15.5 millimeters across, so a scale is a quick way to rule out a fake.

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