1871-S

The 1871-S was struck at San Francisco in a reported mintage of 30,900 pieces, one of the lowest output years in the entire S-mint Seated Liberty Quarter run. The figure sits between the tiny CC mintages of the same era and the larger Philadelphia totals, and the coin entered a West Coast economy where silver still circulated as money rather than being hoarded out of commerce as in much of the East. The design follows the standard 1866 through 1873 With Motto form, with the IN GOD WE TRUST banner above Christian Gobrecht's seated figure of Liberty and the standard heraldic eagle on the reverse. The S mintmark sits below the eagle, and the 6.22 gram planchet weight follows the Coinage Act of February 21, 1853 standard.

Survivors tend to cluster in low circulated grades, with most attributable 1871-S quarters falling in Very Good through Fine where they show the heavy, even wear typical of working money in the Western states. Strike quality on this date is sometimes soft on the higher curls of Liberty's hair and on the eagle's neck feathers, a San Francisco production characteristic that affects Extremely Fine and About Uncirculated grading where details that should be sharp instead read as die fatigue. Mint State examples exist but are scarce, and gem coins with full original luster are condition rarities. Authentication is generally straightforward, since the S mintmark on this date is less frequently faked than the CC mintmarks of the same era, but die-marker verification is still the right discipline for higher-grade examples.

The 1871-S occupies the Semi-Key tier of the series, below the four CC Key Dates and the 1855-S but above most San Francisco Seated quarters of the late 1860s and 1870s. Prices for problem-free circulated examples run modestly into four figures, with Mint State coins commanding significant premiums when they appear. The issue rewards patience over budget: examples turn up regularly enough in dealer inventories and at auction that a focused buyer can secure a clean coin within a year or two of starting the search. For the broader story of Gobrecht's design, the 1873 Coinage Act, and the series' production arc, see the Seated Liberty Quarter series history.