1876 Indian Head Cent

About the Indian Head Cent

The Indian Head Cent, or sometimes referred to as an Indian Penny, is a one-cent coin that was produced by the United States Mint from 1859 to 1909. The coin was designed by James B. Longacre, the Mint’s Chief Engraver, and is composed of 88% copper and 12% nickel. The obverse facing of the coin features a portrait of Lady Liberty, wearing a traditional Native American headdress. The reverse of the coin showcases a style of stylized wheat sprigs which is meant to represent prosperity.

In its original incarnation, the Indian Head cent was minted from 1859 to 1864. This first version of the coin featured a wreath design surrounding the Indian head. However, in 1864 the Mint changed the design from a wreath to a shield to honor the Union’s victory in the Civil War. This run of coins was also the only version to feature the half-arrows at the beginning and end of the word ONE as design elements on both the obverse and reverse faces of the coin.

Once the Civil War ended and the Union was restored, the Mint released a new version of the Indian Head cent in 1866 which featured differences from the original coin. This version, known as the ‘with motto’ variety, includes the phrase “IN GOD WE TRUST” centered below the portrait of Lady Liberty. In 1890, the Mint changed the composition of the coin and replaced the 12% nickel in the alloy with 8.5% tin and 0.5% zinc. This ‘bronze’ version would become the standard composition until the end of the Indian Head Cent’s production.

The Indian Head cent is a sought-after collectible coin due to its intriguing and historically rich design. There are four main varieties of the coin. The first is the ‘without motto’ variety which was minted from 1859-64. The ‘with motto’ variety has two versions as well, with one being minted from 1866-73 and the other being minted from 1873-1909. Finally, the bronze version was minted from 1890-1909. Depending on the variety and condition of the coin, prices for a single Indian Head Cent can range from a few dollars all the way up to thousands of dollars.

The 1876 Indian Head Cent coin, has a total mintage of 7,944,000, struck at the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania mint, and engraved by James Barton Longacre. Made of bronze (.950 copper, .050 tin and zinc), weighing 3.11 grams, with a diameter of 19 mm, and a thickness of 1.47 mm, and featuring a plain edge.

The obverse is liberty with indian headdress bearing the word liberty with the date below. It reads “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA LIBERTY L 1901”. The reverse is shield and wreath with lettering centered and the mintmark below the date (1908 and 1909 only). It reads “ONE CENT”.