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1881
| Weight | 1.94 g |
| Diameter | 17.9 mm |
| Mint | Philadelphia |
| Strike | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 1,080,575 |
| Edge | Plain |
| Alignment | ↑↓ Coin |
| Composition | 75% Copper, 25% Nickel |
| Melt value | — |
| Designer | James B. Longacre |
| Collector's Key ID | CK-979 |
Collection
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No additional varieties recorded for this strike.
External references
Philadelphia delivered 1.08 million three-cent nickels in 1881, a dramatic rebound from the 21,000 coins of the previous year. The reasons for the sudden surge are not fully documented, but the denomination apparently received a temporary burst of commercial demand that convinced the Mint to scale production back up. It would prove to be a one-year anomaly. On July 2, President James Garfield was shot at a Washington railway station by a frustrated office-seeker named Charles Guiteau. Garfield lingered through the summer, dying on September 19. Chester Arthur, the former collector of the Port of New York, became president. The 1881 is by far the most common three-cent nickel of the 1880s and is easy to locate in any grade up to MS64.
Reference data only — not an appraisal.
| Grade | Description | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| G-4 | Good (G) | $17 | $19.50 |
| VG-8 | Very Good (VG) | $19.50 | $23 |
| F-12 | Fine (F) | $25 | $29 |
| VF-20 | Very Fine (VF) | $28 | $32 |
| EF-40 | Extremely Fine (EF) | $40 | $46 |
| AU-50 | About Uncirculated (AU) | $53 | $61 |
| MS-60 | Uncirculated (MS) | $121 | $140 |
| MS-63 | Choice Uncirculated (MS) | — | — |
How much is a 1881 Three-Cent Nickel worth?
How many 1881 Three-Cent Nickels were minted?
What is a 1881 Three-Cent Nickel made of?
What is the melt value of a 1881 Three-Cent Nickel?
Is the 1881 Three-Cent Nickel a key date?
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