1908 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1908

Congress ordered the motto "In God We Trust" restored to US gold coins in May 1908, so both the double eagle and the eagle come in "No Motto" and "With Motto" types this year.

How many coins were made in 1908

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 114,858,146 coins dated 1908 across 25 issues. That is 45% fewer than in 1907 (209,748,470). In 1909 the figure rose to 168,843,050.

It was the smallest year since 1897.

By mint: Philadelphia 76,001,718 (66%, down from 179,976,000), Denver 18,617,750 (16%, up from 10,420,000), New Orleans 13,393,000 (12%, down from 13,564,000) and San Francisco 6,845,678 (6%, up from 5,788,470).

Those coins held about 8,963,972 troy ounces of pure silver and 6,002,007 troy ounces of gold.

1908 coins by denomination

Cents: 33,441,317 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Indian Head Cent, down 69% on 1907. The scarcest is the 1908-S (1,115,000) and the most plentiful the 1908 (32,326,317).

Nickels: 22,686,177 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Liberty Head "V" Nickel, down 42% on 1907.

Dimes: 23,099,000 struck in 4 circulation issues of the Barber Dime, down 33% on 1907. The scarcest is the 1908-O (1,789,000) and the most plentiful the 1908 (10,600,000).

Quarters: 17,048,000 struck in 4 circulation issues of the Barber Quarter, up 9.3% on 1907. The scarcest is the 1908-S (784,000) and the most plentiful the 1908-O (6,244,000).

Half Dollars: 11,639,373 struck in 4 circulation issues of the Barber Half Dollar, down 0.1% on 1907. The scarcest is the 1908 (1,354,545) and the most plentiful the 1908-O (5,360,000).

Gold Coins: 6,944,279 struck in 10 circulation issues of the Indian Head Eagle and Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, up 1032% on 1907. The scarcest is the 1908-S (With Motto) (22,000) and the most plentiful the 1908 (No Motto) (4,271,551).

Every 1908 circulation issue at a glance

• 1908-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle (With Motto): 22,000 struck, 2nd lowest of 52 in the series.
• 1908 Indian Head Eagle (No Motto): 33,500 struck, 3rd lowest of 31 in the series, up from 42 in 1907.
• 1908-S Indian Head Eagle: 59,850 struck, 6th lowest of 31 in the series.
• 1908 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle (With Motto): 156,258 struck, 10th lowest of 52 in the series, up from 12,367 in 1907.
• 1908-D Indian Head Eagle (No Motto): 210,000 struck, 15th lowest of 31 in the series.
• 1908 Indian Head Eagle (With Motto): 341,370 struck, more than 67% of the series' 31 issues, up from 42 in 1907.
• 1908-D Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle (With Motto): 349,500 struck, 16th lowest of 52 in the series.
• 1908-D Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle (No Motto): 663,750 struck, more than 53% of the series' 52 issues.
• 1908-S Barber Quarter: 784,000 struck, 11th lowest of 74 in the series, down from 1,360,000 in 1907.
• 1908-D Indian Head Eagle (With Motto): 836,500 struck, more than 90% of the series' 31 issues.
• 1908-S Indian Head Cent: 1,115,000 struck, 3rd lowest of 54 in the series.
• 1908 Barber Half Dollar: 1,354,545 struck, 31st lowest of 73 in the series, down from 2,598,575 in 1907.

The 13 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Indian Head Cent: Record output and the San Francisco keys

Cent production soared in the new century, from 66 million in 1900 to a series high of 108 million in 1907, driven by streetcar fares, penny candy and new vending machines. For the first time the cent was struck outside Philadelphia: San Francisco made 1.1 million cents in 1908, with an S mint mark below the wreath on the reverse.

The 1909-S, with only 309,000 coined before the Lincoln cent arrived in August 1909, is the second key of the series after the 1877. Both S dates have been faked by adding a mint mark to a Philadelphia coin, so experts check the shape and position of the S. Philadelphia made 14.4 million cents in 1909 before the change. Survivors from this decade are plentiful. Many uncirculated coins show red and brown or fully brown color.

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Liberty Head "V" Nickel: The nickel-in-the-slot era

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.

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Barber Quarter: Denver joins in 1906

Steady demand kept Philadelphia mintages between about 9.6 and 12.2 million from 1902 to 1904, while New Orleans and San Francisco struck from about 1 to 4.7 million each. San Francisco made no quarters in 1904 or 1906. The 1905-O (1,230,000) and the 1908-S (784,000) are the scarcer coins of the period.

The new Denver Mint struck its first quarters in 1906, a total of 3,280,000 with a D below the eagle. In 1907 and 1908 all four mints struck quarters at once, a first for the denomination. Coins of these years are among the most available Barber quarters in circulated grades. Uncirculated pieces from New Orleans often show soft strikes at the eagle's claws and the top of the shield, so sharpness varies more than the mintages suggest.

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Barber Half Dollar: Four mints and the end at New Orleans

Denver struck its first half dollars in 1906, 4,028,000 of them. For four years all four mints made halves, the only time that happened in the Barber series. New Orleans struck 5,360,000 in 1908 and then 925,400 in 1909, its final half dollars before the mint stopped coining. San Francisco and Philadelphia each struck between about 1.25 and 2.64 million a year.

With so many mints working, the coins of these years are among the easiest Barber halves to find. They make a good starting point for a mint mark set because every coin of 1906 to 1908 is available in moderate grades. The 1909-O is the scarcest of the period. Mint marks sit just below the eagle's tail and are small, so a loupe helps when reading them on worn coins.

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Indian Head Eagle: Saint-Gaudens's eagle and the motto debate

Augustus Saint-Gaudens designed the Indian Head eagle at Theodore Roosevelt's request. The first coins were struck in 1907. Early pieces with periods around the reverse legend come with a wire rim or a rolled rim and are rare. The regular 1907 issue, 239,406 struck, has no periods.

Roosevelt disliked religious mottoes on coins and the 1907 design omitted IN GOD WE TRUST. Congress ordered it restored on May 18, 1908. Later 1908 coins show the motto to the left of the eagle. The 1908 no motto from Philadelphia had 33,500 struck and the 1908-D no motto 210,000, while the with motto coins of that year are more common. The edge carries 46 raised stars instead of reeding, one for each state at the time.

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Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle: High relief and the motto change

Saint-Gaudens's double eagle was first struck in 1907 in high relief with the date in Roman numerals, MCMVII. Each coin needed several blows of the press, so only 12,367 were made before Chief Engraver Charles Barber reduced the relief. The low relief coins of 1907 use Arabic numerals and were struck in large numbers. A few ultra high relief patterns were made before either version.

Like the eagle, the double eagle lacked IN GOD WE TRUST until Congress restored it in 1908. The 1908 no motto is common, helped by large hoards of uncirculated coins that came back from overseas banks. With motto coins first appeared later in 1908, with the motto added above the sun on the reverse. The 1908-S, with only 22,000 struck, is a scarce issue.

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Barber Dime: Denver arrives and four mints at once

New Orleans struck no dimes in 1904, leaving Philadelphia (14,600,357) and San Francisco (800,000) to cover the year. The 1904-S is the lowest mintage of the period and a better date in every grade. New Orleans returned in 1905 with 3,400,000, a run that includes a variety with an unusually small mint mark, the 1905-O Micro O.

The Denver Mint struck its first dimes in 1906, a total of 4,060,000 with a D below the wreath. From 1906 through 1909 all four mints made dimes every year, the only stretch of the series when that happened. Total output for 1904 to 1908 came to 127,607,020 coins, led by Philadelphia's 22,220,000 in 1907. The 1908-O, at 1,789,000, is the scarcest coin dated 1906 to 1908.

Nearly all survivors from these years are circulated and an uncirculated 1904-S or 1908-O carries a collector premium. When sorting, read the mint mark carefully: with four mints in operation, a worn D and a worn O can look alike and an S that has filled with dirt can be mistaken for either. For the 1905-O, compare the O with a normal New Orleans mint mark from another year; the Micro O is noticeably smaller. A soft strike or a dark, filled mint mark is not a variety, so look for a clear difference in size.

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