1916 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1916

A new generation of silver designs arrived: the Mercury dime, the Standing Liberty quarter and the Walking Liberty half dollar. The first Standing Liberty quarters were struck in very small numbers late in the year.

New this year: the Standing Liberty Quarter, the Walking Liberty Half Dollar and the Mercury Dime.

Last year of the Barber Quarter and the Barber Dime.

How many coins were made in 1916

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 347,639,473 coins dated 1916 across 19 issues. That is 233% more than in 1915 (104,537,240). In 1917 the figure rose to 501,020,614.

No earlier year on our list comes close: it was the largest output up to that point.

By mint: Philadelphia 238,448,773 (69%, up from 59,820,840), Denver 57,108,200 (16%, up from 34,483,900) and San Francisco 52,082,500 (15%, up from 10,232,500).

Those coins held about 6,424,304 troy ounces of pure silver and 837,123 troy ounces of gold.

1916 coins by denomination

Cents: 190,298,627 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Lincoln Wheat Cent, up 240% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916-S (22,510,000) and the most plentiful the 1916 (131,832,627).

Nickels: 88,691,066 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Buffalo Nickel, up 195% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916-S (11,860,000) and the most plentiful the 1916 (63,498,066).

Dimes: 57,204,080 struck in 5 circulation issues of the Barber Dime and Mercury Dime, up 769% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916-D (264,000) and the most plentiful the 1916 (22,180,080).

Quarters: 8,380,800 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Barber Quarter and Standing Liberty Quarter, up 6.4% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916 (52,000) and the most plentiful the 1916-D (6,540,800).

Half Dollars: 2,130,400 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Walking Liberty Half Dollar, down 27% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916-S (508,000) and the most plentiful the 1916-D (1,014,400).

Gold Coins: 934,500 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Indian Head Eagle and Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, down 17% on 1915. The scarcest is the 1916-S (138,500) and the most plentiful the 1916-S (796,000).

Every 1916 circulation issue at a glance

• 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter: 52,000 struck, the lowest mintage of all 37 Standing Liberty Quarter issues, a famous date.
• 1916-S Indian Head Eagle: 138,500 struck, 11th lowest of 31 in the series, up from 59,000 in 1915.
• 1916-D Mercury Dime: 264,000 struck, the lowest mintage of all 77 Mercury Dime issues.
• 1916-S Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 508,000 struck, 4th lowest of 65 in the series.
• 1916 Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 608,000 struck, 6th lowest of 65 in the series.
• 1916-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle: 796,000 struck, more than 57% of the series' 52 issues, up from 567,500 in 1915.
• 1916-D Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 1,014,400 struck, 11th lowest of 65 in the series.
• 1916 Barber Quarter: 1,788,000 struck, 28th lowest of 74 in the series, down from 3,480,000 in 1915.
• 1916-S Barber Dime: 5,820,000 struck, more than 65% of the series' 75 issues, up from 960,000 in 1915.
• 1916-D Barber Quarter: 6,540,800 struck, more than 85% of the series' 74 issues, up from 3,694,000 in 1915.
• 1916-S Mercury Dime: 10,450,000 struck, 30th lowest of 77 in the series.
• 1916-S Buffalo Nickel: 11,860,000 struck, more than 59% of the series' 64 issues, up from 1,505,000 in 1915.

The 7 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Lincoln Wheat Cent: VDB, new branch mints and wartime demand

Victor David Brenner's Lincoln cent was released on August 2, 1909, the centennial year of Lincoln's birth. Within days the Mint removed his initials, VDB, from the reverse after complaints that they were too prominent. San Francisco struck only 484,000 cents with the initials, creating the 1909-S VDB, the most famous key in the series. The 1909-S without initials is also scarce at 1.8 million.

Denver began striking cents in 1911. The 1914-D, with 1.2 million made, is another key and is often counterfeited by altering the date or adding a mint mark. Matte proofs were made from 1909 to 1916. Demand rose sharply with World War I. Output in 1917 passed 196 million in Philadelphia, a year that also includes a doubled die obverse. Survivors from this era are usually brown and worn, with full red coins scarce for the branch mints.

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Buffalo Nickel: Type 1, Type 2 and the wearing date

James Earle Fraser's Buffalo nickel was released in 1913. The first version, Type 1, showed the bison standing on a raised mound with FIVE CENTS on it. The words wore away quickly, so later in 1913 the Mint lowered the ground into a flat line with the denomination below it, creating Type 2. The 1913-S Type 2 is a key date with only 1.2 million made.

The raised date on the obverse also wore quickly, so many coins from this era have partial or missing dates. Other notable coins include the 1914/3 overdate, the 1914-D and 1915-S semi-keys and the rare 1916 doubled die obverse. Matte proofs were struck from 1913 to 1916. Survivors from Denver and San Francisco often show weak strikes on the horn and the bison's head.

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Barber Quarter: New Orleans closes and the 1913-S

New Orleans struck its last quarters in 1909, a run of 712,000 that is scarce today. Philadelphia mintages then dropped, reaching only 484,000 in 1913. The 1913-S, with just 40,000 struck, is the lowest mintage of the series and a major key. The 1914-S, at 264,000, follows it. Both are frequent targets of added mint marks, so a careful look at the S is worthwhile.

The 1911-D and 1912-S, each under one million, are also hard to find well preserved. Production rose again during World War I. Denver struck 6,540,800 quarters in 1916, the year MacNeil's Standing Liberty design replaced Barber's late in the year, which makes the 1916-D the easiest of the final dates. Late Barber quarters stayed in circulation for decades, so many are worn nearly smooth with only partial rims and dates.

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Standing Liberty Quarter: The bare-breasted Type 1 and the 1917 change

Hermon A. MacNeil's Standing Liberty quarter was struck late in 1916 in a run of only 52,000 pieces and released in January 1917. Liberty steps through a gateway holding a shield and an olive branch with her right breast exposed. The eagle on the reverse flies with no stars beneath it. The 1916 is the key of the series and a frequent target of altered dates.

Type 1 quarters continued into 1917 at all three mints, with more than 8.7 million at Philadelphia. Partway through 1917 the design changed to Type 2: Liberty's chest is covered by chain mail and the reverse eagle is raised, with three stars added below it. Both types of 1917 coins have the mint mark on the obverse, to the left of the date. The raised date was a high point of the design, so many 1917 coins now show a partial date.

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Walking Liberty Half Dollar: Weinman's design and the obverse mint mark

Adolph A. Weinman's Walking Liberty half dollar was first struck in 1916 and reached the public in January 1917. Liberty strides toward the rising sun wrapped in the flag. On the reverse an eagle perches on a rock beside a mountain pine sapling. Weinman's AW monogram sits under the tips of the eagle's wings. The first coins carry the mint mark on the obverse below IN GOD WE TRUST.

The 1916 Philadelphia coins, 608,000 struck, have no mint mark. The 1916-S, at 508,000, is the scarcest of the first-year issues. In 1917 the mint mark moved to the reverse near the rim at the lower left, so the 1917-D and 1917-S exist in both positions. The obverse mint mark versions of 1917 are the scarcer pair. First-year coins are often found well worn with flat centers.

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Indian Head Eagle: Steady issues and the 1911-D key

With the motto in place, eagles were struck in most years at Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco. The 1911-D, only 30,100, is the key of the period. The 1911-S, 1913-S and 1915-S are scarce, especially well struck. Denver struck 2,356,640 in 1910, the largest branch mint total of these years.

In 1912 two more stars were added to the edge for New Mexico and Arizona, raising the count from 46 to 48. Mint marks sit on the reverse to the left of the arrowheads. Large gold coins like these picked up bag marks easily, so the cheek and the field in front of the face are the places to check. The 1916-S closed the period before World War I halted production.

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Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle: The 1909/8 and the 48 stars

The 1909/8 overdate came from a 1908 die altered for the new year. Traces of the 8 can be seen within the 9 under a loupe. The 1909-D with 52,500 struck and the 1913-S with 34,000 are the scarce dates of the period. In 1912 two stars were added to the ring on the obverse, raising it from 46 to 48 for New Mexico and Arizona.

San Francisco struck large numbers in some years, including 2,774,925 in 1909 and 1,498,000 in 1914, while Philadelphia mintages stayed between about 95,000 and 482,000. Proofs of these years were made in very small numbers with matte and satin-like finishes. No double eagles were made after the 1916-S until 1920. Branch mint coins of this era are often found with heavy bag marks.

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Barber Dime: The 1913-S and the last Barber dimes

Philadelphia kept production high in the final years, striking 19,760,000 in 1913, 17,360,230 in 1914 and 18,490,000 in 1916, with a dip to 5,620,000 in 1915. Denver struck Barber dimes only in 1914, a run of 11,908,000. It made none in 1913, 1915 or 1916. Across the four years the mints made 82,528,230 Barber dimes.

San Francisco's output varied a great deal. The 1913-S, with 510,000 struck, is the last semi-key of the series and the lowest mintage of any twentieth century Barber dime. The 1915-S, at 960,000, is also scarce. In 1914 and 1916 San Francisco struck 2,100,000 and 5,820,000, so those dates are easy to find. Both final dates are common because Philadelphia and San Francisco struck millions of Barber dimes before the new design was ready.

Proof production ended with very small runs: 425 in 1914 and 450 in 1915, the lowest proof mintages of the series, with no proofs in 1916. Weinman's Mercury dime replaced the Barber design late in 1916, which makes the 1916 and 1916-S the last Barber dimes. Many coins from these years show heavy wear from decades of use. Check that the date and mint mark are clear and that the headband still shows LIBERTY, since a full, sharp LIBERTY on a late date marks a coin of Fine or better and lifts it well above the many worn survivors.

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Mercury Dime: 1916: a new dime and the Denver key

Adolph A. Weinman's Winged Liberty Head dime replaced Charles Barber's design in 1916, one of three new silver designs that year. Striking began at Philadelphia late that summer, but makers of vending machines and pay telephones soon complained that the first coins gave trouble in their equipment, largely because of a raised fin at the rim. Weinman lowered the relief and pulled LIBERTY away from the edge. The revised dime reached the public on October 30, 1916.

All three mints struck the new design. Philadelphia made 22,180,080 and San Francisco 10,450,000, but Denver turned out only 264,000. The usual explanation is that Denver was busy with quarters. Its first delivery of dimes was not made until December 29, so the 1916-D only reached circulation in 1917. Few were saved, most survivors are well worn and it is the key to the series. It is also one of the most counterfeited US coins, usually by adding a D to a genuine Philadelphia dime of the same year.

If you have a 1916 dime, the mint mark decides almost everything. Look on the reverse at the lower left of the fasces. No letter means Philadelphia, S means San Francisco and only a D means the key. Check any D under magnification for a seam around its edges or a shape that sits oddly in the field. Even a worn genuine 1916-D carries a collector premium, while the 1916 and 1916-S are ordinary first-year coins.

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