The Liberty Head dime (more commonly referred to as the Barber dime) was one of several designs created by Charles E. Barber for circulating U.S. coinage during the turn of the 20th century.
Today, Barber dimes and other Barber coinage are highly popular in many coin collecting circles and collected both as a type coin and a date-and-mintmark series coin.
In general, Barber dimes are highly common as tens of millions were made during their 1892 to 1916 run, with a large number of these still in existence today. However, it may surprise some coin collectors — especially those not yet wholly familiar with the hobby — to know that the high mintage numbers of some of Barber dime dates don’t necessarily translate to the number existing today.
Millions of Barber dimes, especially those from the higher-production years, were melted down, and many others have been lost, damaged, or hidden away in the years since the last Barber dime was struck nearly a century ago. Thankfully, it is still easy to find nice examples of Barber dimes on eBay and at coin dealers’ shops around the country.
Barber Dime Values
Typically, common, low-grade Barber dimes are worth slightly more than prevailing silver values.
Those in better-preserved states are worth anywhere from $10 to $50, with uncirculated pieces fetching $150 or higher.
And, while many dates in the Barber dime series are relatively common, there are plenty of more expensive, scarcer pieces that make collecting the entire series challenging, even for those who aren’t on shoestring budgets.
Below is a run-down of historic values for the scarcest Barber dimes. You can see how over the last 50 years, most Barber dime values have climbed dramatically, which helps illustrate both the swelling demand for the series, growing appreciation of Barber dimes, and small supply of many dates.
These Barber dime values are from the 1965, 1985, and 2005 editions of A Guide Book of United States Coins, by R.S. Yeoman.
1892-O $1.75 (1965) $4.50 (1985) $7 (2005)
1892-S $16 (1965) $23 (1985) $50 (2005)
1893-O $4 (1965) $12 (1985) $25 (2005)
1893-S $4 (1965) $6 (1985) $9 (2005)
1894-O $30 (1965) $32 (1985) $50 (2005)
1894-S $13,000 (1961 auction price); $145,000 (1980 auction price (1980) $850,000
1895 $20 (1965) $55 (1985) $65 (2005)
1895-O $45 (1965) $150 (1985) $300 (2005)
1896-O $17.50 (1965) $42.50 (1985) $65 (2005)
1896-S $25 (1965) $35 (1985) $65 (2005)
1897-O $17.50 (1965) $35 (1985) $55 (2005)
1897-S $17.50 (1965) $7 (1985) $12 (2005)
1898-O $3.25 (1965) $3.25 (1985) $8 (2005)
1898-S $3 (1965) $3.25 (1985) $6 (2005)
1899-O $3 (1965) $3.25 (1985) $6 (2005)
1899-S $2.75 (1965) $3.25 (1985) $6 (2005)
1900-O $2.75 (1965) $4.50 (1985) $15 (2005)
1900-S $2 (1965) $2 (1985) $4 (2005)
1901-S $17.50 (1965) $32.50 (1985) $70 (2005)
1902-S $3 (1965) $3 (1985) $5 (2005)
1903-S $7.50 (1965) $25 (1985) $60 (2005)
1904-S $7 (1965) $18 (1985) $35 (2005)
1913-S $5.50 (1965) $6.50 (1985) $15 (2005)
*All values are for coins in “Good” grade unless otherwise noted.
