US Odd Denominations Values & Mintages
The silver half dime, the two-cent piece, the silver three-cent "trime" and the short-lived twenty-cent piece were struck in the 1700s and 1800s and later abandoned. None has been struck since 1878 and all are popular with type collectors.
- Series
- 7
- Issues
- 181
- First year
- 1794
- Face value
- Various
Design timeline
All odd denominations series
Lowest-mintage odd denominations
Errors & varieties
Why the United States tried unusual denominations
The United States has struck coins in values that seem strange now: a half cent, a two-cent piece, two kinds of three-cent piece, a twenty-cent piece and a three-dollar gold coin. Each answered a specific problem of its day. Postage rates, wartime coin shortages and the political power of silver mining states all shaped what Congress asked the Mint to make. Most were dropped once the problem passed or the public refused to use them.
Our catalog covers three of these: the two-cent piece, the three-cent silver and the twenty-cent piece. The half cent, the copper-nickel three-cent piece of 1865 to 1889 and the three-dollar gold coin belong to the same story but are not listed here.
The three-cent silver and the postage rate
On March 3, 1851 Congress cut the rate for a prepaid letter from five cents to three. The same day it authorized a three-cent silver coin so people could buy stamps without fumbling for copper cents. At 14 millimeters and well under a gram, it is the lightest coin the United States has ever struck. Collectors call it the trime, a name used by Mint Director James Ross Snowden, while people at the time called it a fish scale for its thinness.
The first trimes were only 75% silver, deliberately below the standard so they would not be hoarded or exported. The fineness was raised to 90% in 1854. The coin went through three types, distinguished by the number of lines around the star: none from 1851 to 1853, three from 1854 to 1858 and two from 1859 to 1873.
The two-cent piece and a new motto
The Civil War drove coins out of circulation as people hoarded anything made of metal. Merchants filled the gap with their own bronze tokens. The Act of April 22, 1864 created the bronze cent and the two-cent piece. Congress soon banned private one- and two-cent tokens. The two-cent piece was the first US coin to carry IN GOD WE TRUST, after a minister wrote to Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase asking that coins recognize God and Mint Director James Pollock proposed several mottos.
The 1864 issue comes in Large Motto and Small Motto varieties. The Small Motto, with noticeably smaller letters on the ribbon, is much scarcer and is worth checking for on any 1864 coin.
The twenty-cent piece and Nevada silver
Senator John P. Jones of Nevada pressed for the twenty-cent piece in 1875. It gave the West a convenient coin for making change and created new demand for Comstock silver. Unfortunately it was almost the same size as a quarter and used nearly the same Seated Liberty obverse and eagle reverse. A plain edge instead of a reeded one and the words TWENTY CENTS did little to help. The public rejected it within months and Congress repealed it in 1878.
The Coinage Act of 1873
One law ended three of these experiments at once. The Coinage Act of 1873 abolished the two-cent piece, the three-cent silver and the silver half dime along with the standard silver dollar. Coins dated 1873 of the two-cent and three-cent silver series were struck only as proofs. The twenty-cent piece came two years later, so it was not covered by the act and needed its own repeal.
How to collect odd denominations
A type set of these coins needs only a handful of pieces: a two-cent piece, one trime of each type and a twenty-cent piece. The 1864 Large Motto two-cent piece, the 1853 Type 1 trime and the 1875-S twenty-cent piece are the usual choices because they are the most available dates. Date collectors can attempt full runs, adding proofs for the years when only proofs were struck.
These coins were thin, small or easily confused, so many survivors are bent, holed, cleaned or worn. Bronze two-cent pieces are graded for color as well as wear. A problem-free coin with original surfaces is worth waiting for.
Why proofs matter for these series
As circulation demand faded, the Mint kept striking proofs of these coins for collectors. The late two-cent pieces and three-cent silvers of the 1860s and early 1870s had tiny business strike mintages, while the twenty-cent piece of 1877 and 1878 exists only in proof. Proofs from these years were saved by collectors and often survive in better numbers than the circulation coins of the same date. For some dates a proof is the most practical way to own an example.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most valuable half dime two cent three cent twenty cent?
By mintage, the scarcest regular odd denominations are the 1872 Three-Cent Silver (1,000), the 1870 Three-Cent Silver (3,000), the 1802 Draped Bust Half Dime (3,060), the 1871 Three-Cent Silver (3,400), the 1868 Three-Cent Silver (3,500). Famous errors and varieties can be worth even more. See our key dates and errors list.
Which odd denominations are silver?
Three-Cent Silver (1851–1853, 1854–1873); Twenty-Cent Piece (1875–1878); Flowing Hair Half Dime (1794–1795); Draped Bust Half Dime (1796–1805); Capped Bust Half Dime (1829–1837); Seated Liberty Half Dime (1837–1852, 1853–1873). See all US silver coins.
Why did the US make a three-cent coin?
Congress authorized the three-cent silver in 1851, the same day it reduced the price of a postage stamp to three cents. The coin made buying stamps easier.
Why did the twenty-cent piece fail?
It was nearly the same size as the quarter and had a similar design, so people constantly confused the two. It was struck for circulation only in 1875 and 1876.