Historical United States Mint

Over the 200+ year history of the US Mint, there have been several branch mintss that have come and gone. This page lists them, the years of operation and the mint marks used there.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	1793-	Usually None, Sometimes P
Charlotte, North Carolina	1838-1861	C
Dahlonega, Georgia	1838-1861	D
New Orleans, Louisiana	1838-1909	O
Carson City, Nevada	1870-1893	CC
San Francisco, California	1854-	S
Denver, Colorado	1906-	D
West Point, New York	1976-	W (special coins), or P or None

• There was a long break in New Orleans production from the beginning of the civil war until the end of reconstruction.

• San Francisco last struck regular issue coinage in 1974, and now only strikes collector coinage.

• Coins struck at West Point as regular issue coinage is indistinguishable from coinage struck in Philadelphia. Special collector coins or commemorative coins bear the W mint mark.

• From 1965-1967 all coins were struck without mint marks, despite being manufactured in Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco. This was due to a false belief that the coin shortage was due to zealous coin collectors. The real reason was Gresham's Law and the removal of most silver from the coinage.

• Coins struck in Philadelphia prior to 1982 did not have mint marks (Except for the wartime Jefferson nickels). Cents still do not bear a P mint mark. Even though the mint officially opened in 1792, no regular issue coins were struck until 1793.

• Pioneer coinage, tokens, private issue coins and paper money do not have these official mint marks.