1919-S

The 1919-S Standing Liberty Quarter stands alongside the 1919-D as one of the genuinely lower-mintage issues in the series, with San Francisco producing just 1,836,000 pieces. Pacific Coast coinage demand had cooled from the wartime peak, and San Francisco redirected much of its 1919 capacity toward gold coins and smaller denominations needed for regional commerce. The 1919-S quarter circulated through a city emerging from the Great Influenza, where the Bay Area economy was shifting from naval contracts back toward civilian shipping and Pacific trade. The combination of low production and heavy decades of use makes this date particularly elusive in Mint State, and many surviving examples show the soft central strike that defines San Francisco quarter production of this era.

MacNeil's Type 2 design carries Liberty in mid-stride beneath the legend LIBERTY, with chain mail protecting her torso and the date 1919 positioned below. The S mintmark sits above and to the left of the date, while the "M" monogram of Hermon Atkins MacNeil appears at the base of the shield to the right of the date. Standard specifications apply: 90% silver and 10% copper, weight 6.25 grams, diameter 24.3 mm, reeded edge with 119 reeds. Authentication concerns for the 1919-S center on mintmark integrity, since the date's value has historically made it a target for alteration from Philadelphia pieces. The S mintmark should show proper serifs and consistent depth without signs of tooling around the edges. Many genuine pieces lack full-head definition due to weak central strike rather than wear, and dealer attribution should distinguish between these conditions.

Combined PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service) and NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Company) populations remain modest across all grades, with Full Head Mint State pieces especially scarce. Heritage Auctions has recorded notable results for choice examples. Browse the full Standing Liberty Quarter series history.