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Mint marks: which letter, which mint, which years
A small letter tells you where a coin was struck. Whether there's a letter at all depends on the facility, the coin and the date. A facility's production and a mint mark aren't always the same thing, so this site keeps them apart.
“Mint marks are letters that identify where a coin was made.”
The letters
| Letter | Facility | When, per the sources |
|---|---|---|
| none | Philadelphia, most years | The Mint's 1965 pamphlet lists Philadelphia's mark as “None, except letter P on copper-silver-manganese 5 cents.” (Mint report) Philadelphia's circulating coins of 1980 and later carry a P, except cents (2017 cents excepted). |
| P | Philadelphia | On the silver-alloy nickels of 1942 to 1945, on the 1979 dollar, on every circulating denomination except the cent from 1980, and on 2017 cents. |
| D | Denver | The Mint's record shows Denver dimes, quarters and half dollars from 1906 (pamphlet, table C27, PDF p. 54), cents from 1911 and nickels from 1912 (table C29, PDF p. 56). |
| S | San Francisco | “Coinage operations at the San Francisco Mint were discontinued on Mar. 31, 1955.” (Mint report) It struck coins again from 1965. For many 1968-1979 circulation figures the annual reports don't state the mark, and our tables say so. |
| O | New Orleans | The Mint's record of New Orleans coinage ends in 1909 (pamphlet, PDF p. 4). |
| W | West Point | “In 2019, the “W” mint mark appeared for the first time on a circulating coin.” (U.S. Mint) The annual reports list cents and quarters made at the U.S. Bullion Depository at West Point in calendar years 1974 to 1979 without saying how they were marked. Each year's production is in the following year's report: calendar 1974 (cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1975, PDF p. 104; calendar 1975 (cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1976, PDF p. 107; calendar 1976 (quarters and cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1977, PDF p. 87; calendar 1977 (quarters and cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1978, PDF p. 87; calendar 1978 (quarters and cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1979, PDF p. 83; calendar 1979 (quarters and cents): Mint annual report, fiscal 1980, PDF p. 68. |
Where to look
The Mint's pages describe two placements, and we give no others:
“When nickel was removed from five-cent coins during World War II, the “P” mint mark first appeared on coins produced in Philadelphia. The mark’s position also moved from the right of Monticello to above the dome to indicate the new metal composition.”
“After the war, when use of the regular alloy resumed, mint marks returned to their former positions, and the Mint no longer used Philadelphia’s “P.””
“When mint marks returned in 1968, they were placed on the obverse, after having previously been on the reverse of coins.”
The 1968 sentence describes marks that had been on the reverse. We don't apply it to cents, since the Mint pages we used give no cent-specific location, or to the small dollars, so the checker shows it for nickels, dimes, quarters and half dollars from 1968 only. The Mint's page also says, in general: “The mark can be on the obverse or reverse side, depending on how it fits into the design.” (U.S. Mint)
Coins dated 1965 to 1967
“So, no mint marks appeared on circulating coins from 1965 to 1967.”
“Title II, section 204 of Public Law 89-81, approved July 23, 1965, provides in part, as follows: "No mint mark may be inscribed on any coins during the five-year period beginning on the date of enactment of the Coinage Act of 1965, except that coins struck at the Denver mint as authorized by law prior to such date may continue to be inscribed with that mint mark."”
That law is why a 1964-dated quarter struck at San Francisco in 1965 has no S, while 1964-dated Denver coins keep their D.
Philadelphia's P
“In 1979, the Susan B. Anthony Dollar was introduced. Once again, the “P” mint mark appeared. The following year, the “P” appeared on all of the denominations except the cent, which still holds true today.”
“In 2017, the “P” mint mark appeared for the first time on circulating pennies. This change was only for the 2017 issued cents, in honor of the U.S. Mint’s 225th anniversary.”
“Most circulating coins either have a "P," "D," or no mint mark (which signifies Philadelphia as the production facility).”
Sources
- Mint Marks (U.S. Mint, Collecting Basics). United States Mint (archived copy).
- Domestic and Foreign Coins Manufactured by Mints of the United States, 1792-1965. Bureau of the Mint, U.S. Treasury Department (Eva Adams, Director), hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended June 30, 1975. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended June 30, 1976 and transition quarter. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended September 30, 1977. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended September 30, 1978. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended September 30, 1979. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
- Annual Report of the Director of the Mint, fiscal year ended September 30, 1980. Bureau of the Mint, hosted by FRASER, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Figures and quotes checked against their sources on October 12, 2026.