1887

Production recovered sharply in 1887. Philadelphia delivered 15,263,652 Liberty Head nickels for the year, rebounding from the 1886 semi-key low and beginning the long stretch of steady high-volume output that would characterize the rest of the 1880s and 1890s. The mintage figure puts 1887 firmly in the common-date category, and the coin is available at every grade level and accessible in Mint State without extraordinary effort.

The Interstate Commerce Act was signed on February 4, 1887, creating the Interstate Commerce Commission and establishing the first federal regulatory agency over a private industry. The law targeted abuses by the railroads, and the agency that grew out of it would regulate American transportation for the next century. Nickel coinage has no direct connection to the ICC, but the commerce act and the coin's steady production both reflected a federal government expanding its role in the American economy during the Cleveland administration.

Strike characteristics on 1887 nickels are typical for late-1880s production. NGC notes that the design's low relief made well-struck examples generally available, with the lower-left corn ear on the reverse being the consistent weak spot to check. Most 1887 coins show full obverse star detail and reasonable wreath definition, though specialist collectors building Gem-grade sets pay premiums for examples with the sharpest possible corn detail.

For type collectors selecting a single Liberty Head representative for a general American coin set, the 1887 is one of several interchangeable common dates that can serve the purpose. Specialists building complete date sets find it one of the easier early-series entries to locate in MS64 or better, and it is often the first post-semi-key date collectors acquire when working through the series chronologically.