1889-S

San Francisco struck 972,678 dimes in 1889, a step down from the 1,720,000-piece 1888-S delivery the previous year and the smallest S-mint dime output of the four years between the 1886-S Key and the closing 1891-S. The under-million-piece figure does not approach the three S-mint Keys of 1884-86 in scarcity, but it sits noticeably below the routine branch-mint volumes that closed the decade and produces a coin that sees moderate set-completion premium in the market. The coin is a Legend, No Arrows issue under the 1873 weight standard of 2.50 grams, with the S mintmark inside the wreath on the reverse, below the bow, in the standard placement the branch had used throughout the post-1856 dime program. The same-year Philadelphia 1889 at 7,380,000 pieces is the routine high-volume parent-mint counterpart.

Strike quality on the year runs at the standard branch-mint baseline of the late series, with most examples showing reasonable central detail on Liberty's head, sharp shield rivets, and acceptable wreath veining on the reverse. Softness on the ribbon bow can appear on later working-die states, and rim definition occasionally runs flat near the date, but neither pattern rises to a documented die-state variety. Survivors cluster through Very Fine and Extremely Fine, where the coin did its working life on the West Coast through the 1890s, with About Uncirculated examples available at routine intervals and Mint State coins present in usable quantity through MS-63. MS-64 and above thin out in the way typical of late-1880s branch dimes, and certified gem examples surface infrequently. Authentication relies on the 2.50-gram weight, 17.9-millimeter reeded edge, and the S mintmark placement; counterfeits exist (an S added to a Philadelphia 1889) but at a much lower fraud pressure than the 1884-86 S-mint Keys attract.

For a date-and-mint Seated Dime set, the 1889-S sits in the second tier of S-mint Seated dime difficulty behind the three Keys, with circulated examples through Fine routinely available and Mint State coins reachable at a moderate premium over generic Seated dime pricing. The Regular classification fits the issue accurately. Collectors building the closing-decade S-mint sub-run will find the date a comfortable acquisition without the budget pressure that the Keys carry, and the upper grades function as a quiet condition target rather than an absolute rarity. For the broader story of Gobrecht's design, the 1892 Barber Dime transition, and the series' production arc, see the Seated Liberty Dime series history.