1908 Liberty Head "V" Nickel

The story of the 1908

Philadelphia made 22,686,177 in 1908, down from 39 million in 1907. The next year it made 12 million (1909).

No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1908 you find is from Philadelphia.

Philadelphia struck the Liberty Head "V" Nickel in 32 issues between 1883 and 1913. By mintage this one lands in the more common half, while the key for that mint is the 1913 (5). Within the 1900s it's 3rd smallest of 10, between the 1904 (21 million) and the 1901 (26 million).

The nickel-in-the-slot era (1900 to 1911)

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.

Elsewhere in 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.