1890 US Coins: Values & Mintages

US coinage in 1890

The Sherman Silver Purchase Act increased government silver purchases and kept Morgan dollar production high.

How many coins were made in 1890

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 122,907,927 coins dated 1890 across 10 issues. That is close to the 1889 total of 107,804,014. In 1891 the figure fell to 116,916,551.

No earlier year on our list comes close: it was the largest output up to that point.

By mint: Philadelphia 100,244,337 (82%, up from 93,906,336), New Orleans 10,701,100 (8.7%, down from 11,875,000), San Francisco 9,653,449 (7.9%, up from 1,672,678) and Carson City 2,309,041 (1.9%, up from 350,000).

Those coins held about 30,262,704 troy ounces of pure silver.

1890 coins by denomination

Cents: 57,180,114 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Indian Head Cent, up 17% on 1889.

Nickels: 16,259,272 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Liberty Head "V" Nickel, up 2.4% on 1889.

Dimes: 11,334,027 struck in 2 circulation issues of the Seated Liberty Dime, up 36% on 1889. The scarcest is the 1890-S (1,423,076) and the most plentiful the 1890 (9,910,951).

Quarters: 80,000 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Seated Liberty Quarter, up 567% on 1889.

Half Dollars: 12,000 struck in 1 circulation issue of the Seated Liberty Half Dollar, up 0.0% on 1889.

Dollar Coins: 38,042,514 struck in 4 circulation issues of the Morgan Silver Dollar, up 9.8% on 1889. The scarcest is the 1890-CC (2,309,041) and the most plentiful the 1890 (16,802,000).

Every 1890 circulation issue at a glance

• 1890 Seated Liberty Half Dollar: 12,000 struck, 15th lowest of 116 in the series, similar to 1889.
• 1890 Seated Liberty Quarter: 80,000 struck, 34th lowest of 108 in the series, up from 12,000 in 1889.
• 1890-S Seated Liberty Dime: 1,423,076 struck, more than 61% of the series' 116 issues, up from 972,678 in 1889.
• 1890-CC Morgan Silver Dollar: 2,309,041 struck, 34th lowest of 96 in the series, up from 350,000 in 1889.
• 1890-S Morgan Silver Dollar: 8,230,373 struck, more than 62% of the series' 96 issues, up from 700,000 in 1889.
• 1890 Seated Liberty Dime: 9,910,951 struck, more than 95% of the series' 116 issues, up from 7,380,000 in 1889.
• 1890-O Morgan Silver Dollar: 10,701,100 struck, more than 77% of the series' 96 issues, similar to 1889.
• 1890 Liberty Head "V" Nickel: 16,259,272 struck, more than 55% of the series' 34 issues, similar to 1889.
• 1890 Morgan Silver Dollar: 16,802,000 struck, more than 92% of the series' 96 issues, down from 21,726,000 in 1889.
• 1890 Indian Head Cent: 57,180,114 struck, more than 85% of the series' 54 issues, similar to 1889.

Indian Head Cent: Recovery and the 1886 portrait change

Production rebounded in 1879 as the surplus cleared and the economy recovered, rising from 16 million that year to about 39 million in 1880 and 1881. Proof mintages climbed into the thousands as collecting grew. After a dip in 1885, output passed 45 million in 1887 and 57 million in 1890, the largest yet.

The key variety of this era is the 1886. Early in the year the obverse hub was changed: on Type 1 coins the last feather of the headdress points between the I and C of AMERICA, while on Type 2 coins it points between the C and A. Type 2 is scarcer. The 1888/7 overdate is a major rarity. Bronze from this period often survives with attractive red and brown color. The higher mintages make most dates easy to find in Extremely Fine and better.

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Liberty Head "V" Nickel: Steady circulation years

Production recovered in 1887 to more than 15 million and stayed between roughly 10 and 17 million through most of the next several years. The depression that followed the Panic of 1893 cut 1894 output to 5.4 million, making it a scarcer date for the decade. By 1899 production rose above 26 million as the economy grew again.

These dates form the middle of the series and are usually found worn to Good or Very Good, since Liberty Head nickels stayed in circulation for decades. Wear first shows on the letters of LIBERTY on the coronet and on the hair above the forehead, so collectors use those spots to grade them. Proofs were made every year, so some lower grade coins are worn proofs. Strikes vary from year to year, with weak corn ears at the left of the wreath a common flaw.

Collectors judge Liberty nickels of these years by the coronet. LIBERTY should be readable in every letter on a Fine coin and in better grades the hair curls above the forehead keep their detail. Proofs were struck every year for collectors and survive in good numbers, so a coin with mirror-like fields is worth checking against a proof before you assume it is a circulation strike.

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Seated Liberty Quarter: Small mintages in the final years

By 1879 the country had more quarters than commerce needed. The Mint was also busy with silver dollars under the Bland-Allison Act. Philadelphia struck only 13,600 business strikes in 1879 and just 5,000 in 1886, the low point. Collectors and speculators saved many of these coins, so survivors are often uncirculated and frequently prooflike.

San Francisco struck 1,216,000 in 1888, the only branch mint quarter of the 1880s. In 1891 production surged again at Philadelphia, San Francisco and New Orleans. The 1891-O, with 68,000 struck, was the first New Orleans quarter since 1860 and is scarce. Philadelphia made several hundred to more than a thousand proofs every year of the period. For several dates the proofs are easier to locate than business strikes of the same year.

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Seated Liberty Half Dollar: Tiny mintages in the final years

From 1879 to 1890 Philadelphia struck business strike halves in very small numbers, roughly 4,400 to 12,000 a year, while silver dollars absorbed most of the bullion. Branch mints made no halves at all in these years. Proofs were struck every year alongside the business strikes and survive in comparable numbers.

Collectors and dealers saved many of these coins when new, so they survive in uncirculated grades more often than mintages suggest. Many business strikes are prooflike, which can make them hard to tell from proofs without close study of the rims and devices. In 1891, the final year, Philadelphia struck about 200,000. That date is the most available of the period in circulated grades. Charles Barber's design replaced Seated Liberty in 1892.

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Morgan Silver Dollar: Sherman Act years and the early keys

Philadelphia struck about 20 million dollars a year in the late 1880s, but some branch mint dates were small. The 1889-CC, at 350,000, is a key. San Francisco's 1886-S, 1888-S and 1889-S all fell below one million. The Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890 replaced Bland-Allison with larger silver purchases, though dollar coinage fell once the act stopped requiring it in 1891. Much of the bullion was paid for with Treasury notes rather than coined at once.

Mintages dropped sharply in 1892 and 1893. The 1893-S, with only 100,000 struck, is the key business strike of the series and a common target for altered mint marks and counterfeits. The 1892-S is plentiful in worn grades but rare uncirculated. Carson City stopped coining after 1893, making the 1893-CC its last dollar. The 1893 Philadelphia run of 378,000 is scarce as well.

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Seated Liberty Dime: San Francisco returns and the final Seated dimes

San Francisco struck dimes again in 1884, with 564,969 made. Its 1885-S run was just 43,690, the key of the 1880s and a coin that is rare in every grade. The 1886-S, at 206,524, is also scarce. An S added to a common Philadelphia coin is the main trick to watch for on both dates. From 1887 on San Francisco produced far more, with 4,454,450 in 1887 and between 972,678 and 3,196,116 a year after that. Collectors list two sizes of S on the 1890-S.

Philadelphia's mintages climbed unevenly, from 2,532,497 in 1885 to 11,283,229 in 1887 and 9,910,951 in 1890. In 1891 it struck 15,310,000, the largest dime mintage of the series. New Orleans returned that year after more than thirty years with 4,540,000. Some 1891-O dimes show an O punched over an earlier O that was placed on its side.

Charles Barber's new design replaced the Seated dime in 1892, ending a run of fifty five years. The late Philadelphia dates are common and good choices for a type set in higher grades. The 1891 is among the easiest Seated dimes to find in uncirculated condition. Proof production stayed between 590 and 930 a year from 1884 to 1891. If you have an S dime from 1885 or 1886, though, read the date and mint mark carefully, since both are worth having checked by an expert.

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