1861 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1861

The Civil War began. Confederate forces seized the branch mints at New Orleans, Charlotte and Dahlonega. New Orleans struck some half dollars under Confederate control before closing.

How many coins were made in 1861

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 27,849,783 coins dated 1861 across 11 issues. That is close to the 1860 total of 26,860,180. In 1862 the figure rose to 34,903,655.

By mint: Philadelphia 24,109,150 (87%, up from 23,399,614), New Orleans 2,532,633 (9.1%, down from 2,778,000) and San Francisco 1,208,000 (4.3%, up from 681,000).

Those coins held about 3,459,806 troy ounces of pure silver and 25,504 troy ounces of gold.

1861 coins by denomination

Cents: 10,100,000 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Indian Head Cent, down 51% on 1860.

Dimes: 2,055,500 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Dime, up 162% on 1860. The scarcest is the 1861-S (172,500) and the most plentiful the 1861 (1,883,000).

Quarters: 4,949,600 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Quarter, up 296% on 1860. The scarcest is the 1861-S (96,000) and the most plentiful the 1861 (4,853,600).

Half Dollars: 6,360,533 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Half Dollar, up 208% on 1860. The scarcest is the 1861-S (939,500) and the most plentiful the 1861 (2,888,400).

Gold Coins: 527,150 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Gold Dollar, up 932% on 1860.

Odd Denominations: 3,857,000 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Three-Cent Silver and Seated Liberty Half Dime, up 80% on 1860. The scarcest is the 1861 (497,000) and the most plentiful the 1861 (3,360,000).

Every 1861 circulation issue at a glance

• 1861-S Seated Liberty Quarter: 96,000 struck, 42nd lowest of 108 in the series, up from 56,000 in 1860.
• 1861-S Seated Liberty Dime: 172,500 struck, 29th lowest of 116 in the series, similar to 1860.
• 1861 Three-Cent Silver: 497,000 struck, more than 64% of the series' 23 issues, up from 286,000 in 1860.
• 1861 Gold Dollar: 527,150 struck, more than 86% of the series' 75 issues, up from 36,514 in 1860.
• 1861-S Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 939,500 struck, more than 58% of the series' 116 issues, up from 472,000 in 1860.
• 1861 Seated Liberty Dime: 1,883,000 struck, more than 70% of the series' 116 issues, up from 606,000 in 1860.
• 1861-O Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 2,532,633 struck, more than 84% of the series' 116 issues, up from 1,290,000 in 1860.
• 1861 Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 2,888,400 struck, more than 89% of the series' 116 issues, up from 302,700 in 1860.
• 1861 Seated Liberty Half Dime: 3,360,000 struck, more than 93% of the series' 70 issues, up from 798,000 in 1860.
• 1861 Seated Liberty Quarter: 4,853,600 struck, more than 91% of the series' 108 issues, up from 804,400 in 1860.
• 1861 Indian Head Cent: 10,100,000 struck, 12th lowest of 54 in the series, down from 20,566,000 in 1860.

Indian Head Cent: Copper-nickel years and the Civil War

James Longacre's Indian Head replaced the Flying Eagle in 1859 because the new portrait struck up more fully. The 1859 is a one year type with a laurel wreath reverse. The Mint made 36.4 million. In 1860 the Mint switched to an oak wreath with a small shield at the top, the reverse used for the rest of the series.

The Civil War changed everything. By 1862 people were hoarding all coins, including these copper-nickel cents. Private merchants issued millions of lighter Civil War tokens to fill the gap. Mint output rose to meet demand, with 28 million cents in 1862 and nearly 50 million in 1863. Copper-nickel Indian cents are thick and pale tan in color. The hard metal often left weak feather tips and diamonds on the ribbon. They wear evenly and many survive in Fine to Extremely Fine.

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Seated Liberty Quarter: Heavy output and Civil War hoarding

With the lighter standard in place, quarters circulated freely. Philadelphia struck about 7.3 million in 1856, 9.6 million in 1857 and 7.4 million in 1858. The 1856-S includes a large S over small S variety. New Orleans made its last quarters of the period in 1860 and did not strike them again until 1891.

Once banks suspended specie payments at the end of 1861, silver vanished from circulation in the East. Philadelphia output fell to 191,600 in 1863, 93,600 in 1864 and 58,800 in 1865, while San Francisco, where silver still passed at par, kept striking small runs. The 1864-S, at 20,000, is the key of the decade. From 1858 proofs were made each year in the hundreds. Several of the Civil War dates are easier to find as proofs than as business strikes.

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Seated Liberty Half Dollar: Peak branch output and the 1861-O

With the arrows gone, halves were struck in large numbers. New Orleans reached 7,294,000 in 1858. San Francisco's early halves, such as the 1856-S and 1857-S, are scarce in better grades. In 1861 New Orleans struck 2,532,633 halves under three authorities: the United States, the State of Louisiana and the Confederacy. Specialists use die markers to tell which authority struck a given coin. Four halves were also made with a Confederate reverse design.

During the Civil War silver disappeared from eastern circulation. Philadelphia mintages fell to between about 250,000 and 512,000 a year from 1862 to 1865. San Francisco, where coins still passed at face, struck more halves than Philadelphia in most of those years. Worn wartime Philadelphia halves are harder to find than their mintages suggest because many were melted later.

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Gold Dollar: Type 3 at the southern mints

The Type 3 design used a larger, flatter head that struck up better than Type 2. Philadelphia made hundreds of thousands each year, but Charlotte and Dahlonega produced only a few thousand and these coins are scarce. San Francisco struck 10,000 to 15,000 a year. Charlotte struck its last gold dollars in 1859.

The 1861-D is the famous coin of this era. After Georgia seized the Dahlonega Mint in April 1861, a small number of gold dollars were struck there under Confederate control. It is a major rarity today and is often counterfeited. Philadelphia struck 527,150 gold dollars in 1861 as the war began. Branch mint Type 3 dollars of these years are usually found in Very Fine to About Uncirculated.

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Three-Cent Silver: Type 3 brings better strikes

In 1859 the star outline was reduced to two lines and the coins struck up much more sharply. The lower relief let the dies fill properly, so stars, shield lines and the III show clearly on most coins. Mintages ran between 286,000 and 497,000 a year from 1859 to 1862, high enough that these dates are easy to find.

The 1862/1 overdate is a popular variety of this period. Proofs reached 1,000 in 1860 and 1861. Coins of these years are the best choice for a well-struck example of the denomination because they combine good mintages with the improved design. Uncirculated pieces often show attractive toning. The 1862 was the last year with a mintage in the hundreds of thousands.

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Seated Liberty Dime: The legend moves to the obverse

In 1860 Chief Engraver James B. Longacre removed the stars from the obverse and put UNITED STATES OF AMERICA in their place. On the reverse a larger cereal wreath of corn, wheat, maple and oak leaves now surrounds ONE DIME. San Francisco did not receive the new dies in time. Its 140,000 dimes of 1860 still have the stars obverse and the old laurel wreath reverse, which makes the 1860-S the last of the stars type.

New Orleans struck only 40,000 dimes in 1860, a key date of the series. Louisiana left the Union early in 1861 and the mint was seized, so no New Orleans dimes were made again until 1891. Philadelphia struck 606,000 in 1860 and 1,883,000 in 1861, then just 847,000 in 1862. San Francisco made 172,500 and 180,750 in those two years.

The Civil War explains the drop. At the end of 1861 banks stopped paying out gold and silver for paper money. Within months silver coins vanished from circulation in the East and postage stamps and small paper notes took their place. Proofs continued at 1,000 a year in 1860 and 1861 and 550 in 1862. When you identify a dime from these years, the legend is the quickest clue: legend on the obverse means 1860 or later. The legend design stayed in use with only minor changes until 1891.

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Seated Liberty Half Dime: The legend moves to the obverse

In 1860 James B. Longacre replaced the stars with the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. The reverse now shows a cereal wreath of corn, wheat, maple and oak leaves around HALF DIME. Philadelphia struck 798,000 of the new design and New Orleans 1,060,000. That was the last New Orleans half dime, since Louisiana left the Union early in 1861. The new reverse puts HALF DIME inside the wreath with no lettering around it, because the country's name now sits on the obverse. No San Francisco half dimes were struck in these years. The design stayed in use until the denomination ended in 1873.

Philadelphia struck 3,360,000 in 1861, a figure that includes an 1861/0 overdate visible only under strong magnification. Then the Civil War cut production. Banks stopped paying out silver at the end of 1861 and by 1862 half dimes had vanished from circulation in the East. In July 1862 Congress authorized postage currency, small paper notes that stood in for silver change. Philadelphia still struck 1,492,000 that year.

Proofs were struck at 1,000 a year in 1860 and 1861 and 550 in 1862. The legend type coins of these years are common in worn grades and make a good type coin. To spot one quickly, look at the obverse: the legend replaces the stars around Liberty. Check under magnification for the 1861/0 if you have an 1861.

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