USA Coin Book
Quarter · $0.25
1877-S Seated Liberty Quarter (1838-1891)
FS-501
Key Features
FS-501: S over Horizontal S (S/S) Source: https://www.pcgs.com/coinfacts/coin/5507 This robust design run bore witness to massive gold discoveries, Western frontier settlement, and deep wartime duress.
Intriguing History
By 1877, the Gilded Age was picking up speed: the Bland-Allison Act of 1878 forced the Treasury to buy huge quantities of silver and coin it into dollars whether commerce actually needed them or not, while railroads, heavy industry, and a wave of immigration reshaped the economy under Presidents Hayes, Garfield, and Arthur. This Seated Liberty quarter, in production for more than half a century, was struck during exactly this period. This one came from the San Francisco Mint, opened in 1854 to coin the flood of West Coast bullion.
Total Weight6.25 g