1904 Barber Quarter

1904 Barber quarters are generally common, though as a date saw fewer issued than usual, as only the Philadelphia and New Orleans mint were involved in production duties that year. Still, enough Barber quarters were churned out to keep the commerce wheels of the early 20th century spinning and coin collectors of the modern day happy.

Here’s a basic rundown of 1904 Barber quarters, including their mintages and values:

• 1904 – 9,588,143; $13

• 1904-O – 2,456,000; $21

• 1904 proof – 670; $850

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

The Philadelphia issue is unsurprisingly the more common of the two business-strike issues, with New Orleans a distant second place. The proof 1904 Barber quarters saw decent numbers that year, considering the typical mintage of an early 20th-century proof coin.

Barber quarters were first minted in 1892 and were designed by U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber upon the request of the U.S. government. They replaced the Seated Liberty quarter, which was in production from 1838 through 1891, and are by and large the earliest quarter design type to be considered common in the grand scheme of coin collecting, In fact, many low-grade, damaged Barber coins end up in junk silver investment portfolios.