1909 Barber Quarter
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 9,268,000 made
- Mintage
- 9,268,000
- Metal
- 90% silver, 10% copper
- Weight
- 6.25 g
- Diameter
- 24.3 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1909 Barber Quarter worth?
In worn condition it trades for about its silver content, 0.1808 troy ounces. Uncirculated coins with full luster or attractive toning sell for more.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1909 Barber Quarter rare?
- No. With 9.3 million made, it's one of the most common Barber Quarters.
- Is the 1909 Barber Quarter silver?
- Yes. It's 90% silver, 10% copper and holds 0.1808 troy ounces of pure silver.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1909 Barber Quarter?
- On the reverse, below the eagle's tail. Philadelphia quarters have no mint mark.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1909 are scarcer?
- The 1913 at 484,000, the 1910 at 2,244,000, the 1906 at 3,655,760, plus 6 more. So the 1909 is one of the easier dates of its stretch.
- How many 1909 Barber Quarter coins were made?
- 9,268,000.
What to check on your 1909
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Don't clean it. Cleaning leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Proof or circulation strike? A proof has mirror-like fields and frosted design details and was sold to collectors, not released in change. The 1909 Barber Quarter Proof (650 made) is the one to compare with.
- Judge the grade under good light. LIBERTY on the headband is the benchmark: a full, sharp LIBERTY is required for Very Fine and above.
Circulated examples are usually traded for their silver content. Pick out the best ones: original luster and attractive toning lift a coin above melt, while cleaned coins lose most of their collector value.
The story of the 1909
Philadelphia made 9,268,000 in 1909, up from 4.2 million in 1908. In 1910 the figure was 2.2 million.
1909-O came to 712,000 and 1909-S came to 1.3 million and 1909-D came to 5.1 million, so neither mint's 1909 coin is much scarcer than the other.
Across Philadelphia's 25 Barber Quarter issues, the hardest to find is the 1913 with 484,000 made. The 1909 is one of the easier ones. Within the 1900s it's 28th smallest of 32, between the 1901 (8.9 million) and the 1904 (9.6 million).
New Orleans closes and the 1913-S (1909 to 1916)
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.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1909
The Lincoln cent replaced the Indian Head cent to mark the centennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. Designer Victor David Brenner's initials V.D.B. on the reverse were removed within days after complaints. The New Orleans Mint struck its last coins that year.
How to recognize it
Charles Barber's Liberty faces right wearing a cap, a laurel wreath and a headband inscribed LIBERTY, with IN GOD WE TRUST above and 13 stars around. The reverse shows a heraldic eagle holding arrows and an olive branch with a ribbon reading E PLURIBUS UNUM. The mint mark sits below the eagle's tail. On worn coins, the letters of LIBERTY are the first thing to fade.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Barber Quarter (1892–1916) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1909 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 9,268,000 |
| Face value | 25¢ |
| Composition | 90% silver, 10% copper |
| Weight | 6.25 grams |
| Diameter | 24.3 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Silver content | 0.1808 troy oz (5.625 g) |
| Designer | Charles E. Barber |
Other 1909 Barber Quarter issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1909 Barber Quarter | 9,268,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1909 Barber Quarter Proof | 650 | Proof | 0.1808 oz |
| 1909-D Barber Quarter | 5,114,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1909-S Barber Quarter | 1,348,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1909-O Barber Quarter | 712,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
Mintage: United States quarter mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.