The first copper coins from the US Mint in 1793 were half Cents and large Cents, which were struck until 1857. The Coinage Act of 1857 provided for a new design of smaller, copper-nickel one cent coins, designed by James Longacre and featuring a Flying Eagle. These coins only lasted 3 years, as the dies kept breaking. Longacre redesigned the coins to depict Liberty wearing an Indian headdress, creating the Indian Head Penny Series that we know today.
For more information on this coin series, read our in-depth guide to the history of the Indian Head Penny.
Varieties and Key Dates of Indian Head Cents
1859 Copper-Nickel, Laurel Wreath
- This is the first copper-nickel Indian Head cent ever struck. The reverse depicted the words “ONE CENT” housed within a laurel wreath. A large number were struck of this new cent 36,400,000.
1860 Copper-Nickel, Oak Wreath with Shield
- Just a year later, the design on the reverse was changed to an oak wreath (which is a more ‘national’ entity) and a patriotic shield was added as the country was highly segregated between the northern and the Southern states. Some 20 million coins were struck.
1860 Copper-Nickel Pointed Bust
- This variety has a point at the end of the truncation of the bust as opposed to a rounded bust. There are no exact numbers as to how many coins exist of the Pointed or Rounded bust types.
1864 Bronze, No “L” on Ribbon
- More than 39 million coins were struck in bronze and dated 1864.
- In November of 1864, the coin received a sharpness redesign by Longacre. In addition to the added sharpness, a small “L” (for Longacre) was added to the lower ornamental ribbon behind the neck of Miss Liberty. While again, we do not know how many 1864 Bronze coins bear the “L” on the ribbon as opposed to not having an “L.” However, the higher premiums, in all grades, bear out that the numbers of coins with the “L” are considerably lower than those without the “L.”
1869 Over 9
- The 9 Over (overdate is scarce in all grades and worth at least double what a normal date 1869 Indian Head Cent is worth. A close look with a 5X magnified may allow you to see the tail of the “under 9.”
1873 Closed 3
- There are two distinct varieties of the 1873-dated Indian Head Cents. The difference between the Open 3 and a Closed 3 is that the width of the open area on the numeral 3 is narrower on the Closed 3 and wider on the Open 3. There is a slight difference in price in AU and higher grades favoring the Closed variety.
1873 Open 3
- The 1873 “Open 3” is slightly less valuable than the “Closed 3” variety in About Uncirculated and higher Uncirculated grades.
1873 Doubled Liberty
- On this scarce coin, the word “LIBERTY” on the Indian’s headdress has doubled lettering, as seen under a 10X magnifier. It is 10x more valuable for a low grade coin to 20x more valuable for an uncirculated specimen.
- With a mintage of only 852,500 coins struck, it is the lowest mintage Philadelphia Mint struck Indian Head Cent, where normal mintages are in the 10s of millions of coins. The 1877 is considered THE key date of all Indian Head cents. It is followed in value by the only two San Francisco Mint coins at the end of the series.
1886 Variety 1
- The 1886 Indian Cent has two distinct varieties. On Variety 1, the lowest feather in the headdress points between the “I” and the “C” in the word “AMERICA.”
1886 Variety 2
- The 1887 variety 2 penny uses that same lowest headdress feather to determine the Variety. For Variety 2, that lowest feather points between the “C” and the “A” at the end of the word “AMERICA.” In Extremely Fine and higher grades, the Variety 2 nearly doubles in price over Variety 1.
1888 Last “8” Over “7”
- The tail of the “7” is visible under that last “8.” There is also a small die cud to the left of the word “UNITED” and near the rim. This is a very rare variety in all grades. NGC or PCGS authentication is highly recommended.
1894 Double Die Obverse
- The date is the recipient of doubling on the obverse of this scarce variety. Pieces of the “8”, the “9” and the “4” are variously visible next to the overdate numerals.
1908-S Indian Head Cent
- The 1908-S Indian Head Penny had a mintage of 1,115,000 coins, which is the third lowest of all dates, behind the 1909-S and the 1877, respectively. It was the first Indian Head Cent to be struck at a mint other than Philadelphia. It is collectible in all grades.
1909-S Indian Head Cent
- The 1909-S Indian Head Cent has the absolute lowest mintage of all Indian Head pennies at only 309,000 coins. Remember that the San Francisco Mint, a bit later in the year, also struck 1,825,000 1909-S Lincoln Cents and 484,000 of the rare 1909-S VDB Key Date Lincoln Cents.
Valuations of Indian Head Cents
| Date/MM | Mintage | Very Fine | About Unc | Choice Unc |
| 1859 CN | 36,400,000 | $75 | $400 | $950 |
| 1860 Oak | 20,566,000 | $50 | $140 | $350 |
| 1860 Ptd | Included | $90 | $350 | $750 |
| 1864 No L | 39,233,714 | $75 | $125 | $150 |
| 1864 With L | Included | $250 | $425 | $575 |
| 1969 / 9 | Unknown | $800 | $1,250 | $1,700 |
| 1873 Closed 3 | Unknown | $150 | $500 | $675 |
| 1873 Open 3 | Unknown | $150 | $300 | $600 |
| 1873 Double Liberty | Unknown | $2,250 | $5,000 | $7,750 |
| 1877 | 852,500 | $2,100 | $4,500 | $6,250 |
| 1886 Variety 1 | Unknown | $125 | $225 | $300 |
| 1886 Variety 2 | Unknown | $140 | $285 | $525 |
| 1888 8/7 | Unknown | $6,600 | $30,000 | $70,000 |
| 1894 Double Date | Unknown | $325 | $1,350 | $2,400 |
| 1908-S | 1,115,000 | $175 | $325 | $550 |
| 1909-S | 309,000 | $550 | $1,100 | $1,500 |
| Pre-1900 Common | Unknown | $4.50 | $40 | $85 |
| 1900+ Common | Unknown | $4.00 | $36 | $70 |
