1919 US Coins: Values & Mintages

How many coins were made in 1919

Counting the circulation issues on this page, US mints struck 738,642,000 coins dated 1919 across 15 issues. That is 37% more than in 1918 (538,061,588). In 1920 the figure fell to 631,172,150.

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

By mint: Philadelphia 500,915,000 (68%, up from 367,744,948), San Francisco 159,519,000 (22%, up from 80,216,000) and Denver 78,208,000 (11%, down from 90,100,640).

Those coins held about 8,006,790 troy ounces of pure silver.

1919 coins by denomination

Cents: 588,935,000 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Lincoln Wheat Cent, up 59% on 1918. The scarcest is the 1919-D (57,154,000) and the most plentiful the 1919 (392,021,000).

Nickels: 76,395,000 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Buffalo Nickel, up 69% on 1918. The scarcest is the 1919-S (7,521,000) and the most plentiful the 1919 (60,868,000).

Dimes: 54,529,000 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Mercury Dime, down 21% on 1918. The scarcest is the 1919-S (8,850,000) and the most plentiful the 1919 (35,740,000).

Quarters: 15,104,000 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Standing Liberty Quarter, down 54% on 1918. The scarcest is the 1919-S (1,836,000) and the most plentiful the 1919 (11,324,000).

Half Dollars: 3,679,000 struck in 3 circulation issues of the Walking Liberty Half Dollar, down 82% on 1918. The scarcest is the 1919 (962,000) and the most plentiful the 1919-S (1,552,000).

Every 1919 circulation issue at a glance

• 1919 Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 962,000 struck, 9th lowest of 65 in the series, down from 6,634,000 in 1918.
• 1919-D Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 1,165,000 struck, 12th lowest of 65 in the series, down from 3,853,040 in 1918.
• 1919-S Walking Liberty Half Dollar: 1,552,000 struck, 14th lowest of 65 in the series, down from 10,282,000 in 1918.
• 1919-S Standing Liberty Quarter: 1,836,000 struck, 11th lowest of 37 in the series, down from 11,072,000 in 1918.
• 1919-D Standing Liberty Quarter: 1,944,000 struck, 13th lowest of 37 in the series, down from 7,380,800 in 1918.
• 1919-S Buffalo Nickel: 7,521,000 struck, 27th lowest of 64 in the series, up from 4,882,000 in 1918.
• 1919-D Buffalo Nickel: 8,006,000 struck, 30th lowest of 64 in the series, similar to 1918.
• 1919-S Mercury Dime: 8,850,000 struck, 25th lowest of 77 in the series, down from 19,300,000 in 1918.
• 1919-D Mercury Dime: 9,939,000 struck, 29th lowest of 77 in the series, down from 22,674,800 in 1918.
• 1919 Standing Liberty Quarter: 11,324,000 struck, more than 86% of the series' 37 issues, down from 14,240,000 in 1918.
• 1919 Mercury Dime: 35,740,000 struck, more than 70% of the series' 77 issues, up from 26,680,000 in 1918.
• 1919-D Lincoln Wheat Cent: 57,154,000 struck, 61st lowest of 140 in the series, similar to 1918.

The 3 more plentiful issues are listed in the tables below.

Lincoln Wheat Cent: Initials return and the 1922 plain

In 1918 Brenner's initials returned, this time tiny on the truncation of Lincoln's shoulder, where they stayed for the rest of the series. Production stayed high after the war, but a recession cut 1921 output. In 1922 only Denver struck cents. Worn and filled dies at Denver produced coins with no visible mint mark, the 1922 Plain. Only one die pair shows a strong reverse and no trace of the D. That is the variety collectors want.

Branch mint cents of the 1920s are known for soft strikes. The 1924-D, 1926-S and other San Francisco and Denver dates often show weak hair detail and mushy wheat lines. The 1926-S is notoriously hard to find with red color. Most dates from this era survive in circulated grades with brown surfaces. Fully struck, red examples from the branch mints are much harder to find than Philadelphia coins.

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Buffalo Nickel: World War I output and the 1918/7-D

Demand during and after World War I kept production high, reaching more than 60 million at Philadelphia in 1919 and 1920. Denver and San Francisco each struck around 5 to 10 million a year, far less than Philadelphia. A postwar recession cut 1921 output. San Francisco struck only 1.6 million that year, a semi-key date.

The 1918/7-D overdate is one of the most famous varieties of the 20th century. A working die received an 8 over a 7 and went into use without the error being caught. The overdate is difficult to see on worn coins, so collectors check the shape of the 8. Most survivors from these years are worn, often with weak dates. Well struck branch mint coins are scarce.

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Standing Liberty Quarter: Raised dates and soft strikes

The Type 2 design kept the date raised on a step at Liberty's feet, where it wore away in circulation. Many Standing Liberty quarters from these years now have partial or missing dates. The 1918/7-S overdate, made when a 1917 die was repunched with an 8, is the major variety of the series and shows a faint 7 inside the 8.

Mintages were large in 1918 and 1920, but amid the postwar slump the 1921 run fell to 1,916,000. No quarters were struck in 1922. San Francisco's 1923-S, with 1,360,000 made, is a key. Branch mint coins from Denver and San Francisco often show weak strikes on Liberty's head, so a Full Head example of a 1919-D, 1920-D or 1923-S is far rarer than its mintage suggests.

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Walking Liberty Half Dollar: Soft strikes and scarce postwar dates

Mintages fell after World War I, reaching only 246,000 at Philadelphia, 208,000 at Denver and 548,000 at San Francisco in 1921. These three 1921 coins are the keys of the series. The 1921-D is the rarest. The 1919 issues from all three mints are also scarce, especially in better grades. Most survivors of these dates are well worn.

No halves were struck in 1922 or from 1924 to 1926. Only San Francisco struck them in 1923, 1927 and 1928. Weinman's design was hard to strike, so coins from these years often show flat centers on Liberty's head and left hand. Fully struck examples of the 1919-D, 1920-D and 1923-S are seldom seen. The 1929-D and 1929-S close the period with mintages near one and two million.

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Mercury Dime: War years and heavy output

With the United States drawn into the First World War, demand for small change jumped. The three mints struck 307,166,800 Mercury dimes dated 1917 to 1920, with Philadelphia alone producing 55,230,000 in 1917 and 59,030,000 in 1920. Denver and San Francisco each added between about 8.8 and 27.3 million a year. The smallest figure of the era is the 1919-S at 8,850,000, still a big number by the standards of the 1920s. The 1917-D, at 9,402,000, is a little scarcer than its neighbors in better grades.

None of these dates is scarce in worn condition, but quality is another matter. Branch mint dimes from these years are often softly struck, with flat hair above the forehead, a weak date and indistinct bands across the fasces. The 1919-D and 1919-S are famous for this. An uncirculated example with fully split center bands earns a collector premium far beyond that of an ordinary coin of the same date. Philadelphia coins of the period usually come better struck.

Most coins you'll find from this era are worn to Good or Very Good, with the date still readable but the wing feathers flattened. Read the date first, then the mint mark. A weak strike can leave a D or an S faint, so tilt the coin under a light until the letter shows its full outline. Silver dimes like these stayed in pocket change until the 1960s, so most of them saw decades of use.

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