1804 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1804

No silver dollars were struck with the 1804 date at the time. The famous "1804 dollars" were made in the 1830s for diplomatic presentation sets and later as restrikes.

The Mint in the 1800s

In 1800 the national capital moved to Washington, but the Mint stayed in Philadelphia. Congress renewed it only for a few years at a time and there were serious proposals to close it and contract coinage out. Elias Boudinot served as director until 1805 and the scientist Robert Patterson took over early in 1806, running the Mint for almost two decades.

Large silver and gold coins were being exported or melted rather than circulating, so the silver dollar and the $10 eagle stopped in 1804 and were formally suspended in 1806. The half dime was not struck after 1805 and the quarter stopped after 1807. The Mint concentrated on cents and half dollars, which became the most useful coins for banks. In 1807 the German-born engraver John Reich joined the Mint and introduced the Capped Bust designs.

How many coins were made in 1804

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 111,503 coins dated 1804 across 3 issues. That is 97% fewer than in 1803 (3,390,815). In 1805 the figure rose to 1,410,612.

It was the smallest year since 1799.

Every circulation coin on this page came from Philadelphia.

Those coins held about 1,943 troy ounces of pure silver.

1804 coins by denomination

Cents: 96,500 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Draped Bust Large Cent, down 97% on 1803.

Dimes: 8,265 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Draped Bust Dime, down 75% on 1803.

Quarters: 6,738 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Draped Bust Quarter.

Every 1804 circulation issue at a glance

• 1804 Draped Bust Quarter: 6,738 struck, 2nd lowest of 5 in the series, similar to 1796.
• 1804 Draped Bust Dime: 8,265 struck, the lowest mintage of all 10 Draped Bust Dime issues, down from 33,040 in 1803.
• 1804 Draped Bust Large Cent: 96,500 struck, 2nd lowest of 12 in the series, down from 3,131,691 in 1803.

Draped Bust Large Cent: Engraving errors, the rare 1804 and peak output

Production surged early in this period, with more than 3.4 million cents in 1802 and over 3.1 million in 1803. Hand punched dies produced a run of memorable mistakes: the 1801 Three Errors reverse shows a 1/000 fraction, a single stem and IINITED for UNITED. Cents of 1802 and 1803 also turn up with the 1/000 fraction. The 1803 has small and large date and fraction combinations collectors pair by die.

The 1804 is a classic rarity. The Mint reported 96,500 cents that year, but many of them were likely dated 1803, so true 1804 cents are scarce. A restrike made outside the Mint from discarded dies around 1860 is a different piece. Altered dates are common, so the 1804 is one cent that should always be authenticated. Output fell to 348,000 in 1806, then recovered in 1807, which brings the 1807/6 overdate and the Comet variety with a die break behind the head. Survivors from these years are often dark brown with some porosity.

Some of the best-known early copper varieties come from hurried die work in these years. The 1801 "3 Errors" reverse shows the fraction as 1/000, a single stem on the wreath and IINITED for UNITED. The 1802 "stemless wreath" and the 1803 reverse with 1/100 over 1/000 are other examples. Mintages passed three million in 1802 and 1803, which makes this the most affordable stretch for collecting Draped Bust cents.

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Draped Bust Quarter: Heraldic eagle quarters

Quarter production resumed in 1804 with a new reverse taken from the dollar and half eagle: a heraldic eagle with a shield on its breast, a ribbon reading E PLURIBUS UNUM and a field of stars above. For the first time the value appeared, as 25 C. below the eagle. The 1804 is the key of the type with a mintage of 6,738 and is scarce in every grade.

Output then rose quickly to 121,394 in 1805, 206,124 in 1806 and 220,643 in 1807. The 1806/5 overdate shows traces of a 5 under the last digit. Heraldic eagle quarters are often weak on the stars, the clouds and the shield because high points on the two sides sat opposite each other and the screw press could not fill both. Most survivors are well worn and many show adjustment marks or old cleaning. Quarter coinage then stopped again until 1815.

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Draped Bust Dime: The 1804 key and the last Draped Bust dimes

The 1804 is the key of the series, with a delivery total of 8,265. It comes with two reverses. One has thirteen stars above the eagle and the other has fourteen stars. The fourteen star die was also used to strike quarter eagles, a sign of how freely the Mint shared dies in these years. Both 1804 varieties are significant rarities.

Mintages then rose sharply. Philadelphia struck 120,780 dimes in 1805, with four berries or five berries on the olive branch. No dimes are dated 1806. In 1807 the Mint delivered 165,000, the largest total of the type. These two dates are by far the most available Draped Bust dimes and the usual choice for a heraldic eagle type coin.

No dimes were struck in 1808. John Reich's Capped Bust design took over in 1809. Silver depositors chose which coins the Mint made from their metal and most asked for half dollars, so small coins were struck only now and then. Each die marriage of 1805 and 1807 is listed in the JR reference and some are much rarer than others. For the 1805, count the berries on the branch. For any date in this group, check the surfaces for cleaning or tooling and the edge for reeding, since some survivors were made into jewelry. Expect a soft strike on the eagle and the stars.

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