1899 Barber Dime

1899 Barber dimes are considered common by most coin collectors, and the prevalence of these coins at coin dealers and in online auctions is a testament to this fact. The Barber dime, which was designed by U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber and first released in 1892, is a popular type coin and still commonly collected by date and mint.

Here’s a breakdown of the mintages and values of the 1899 Barber dimes:

• 1899 – 19,580,000; $5

• 1899-O – 2,650,000; $13

• 1899-S – 1,867,493; $12

• 1899 proof – 846; $600

*Values are for coins in a grade of Good-4, unless otherwise noted.

The 1899 Barber dime from Philadelphia is plentiful enough to be valued at only around $5 in a grade of Good, and remains affordable in many of the circulated grades higher than that. Even the New Orleans (O) and San Francisco (S) dimes, which are usually the mint from which key and semi-key coins of the era were minted, are quite affordable in Good.

The scarcest of the 1899 Barber dimes isn’t any of the business-strike issues but the proof coin from that year. However, most date-and-mintmark Barber dime collectors will not pursue buying the proof coin, which is mainly sought by only the most enthusiastic of Barber dime collectors.