Standing Liberty Quarters: History, Rarity, and Value Guide

The standing liberty quarter is an American 25-cent coin issued for circulation from 1916 to 1930 (except 1922). These quarters reflected a time of change and renewal, joining many other American coins being redesigned with more artistic allure.

Sometimes called SLQs, the standing liberty quarters were only around for 15 years but remain significant in a few ways. For one, there were no proof standing liberty quarters, making SLQs the only US circulation coin in the 1900s with no proof varieties.

Secondly, these quarters saw Americans through significant nationwide hardships — namely World War I, the 1920-1921 recession, and the Great Depression. Lastly, the coin’s shifting designs remain the subject of various stories regarding puritanical criticism, resentment at the mint, and rumors galore.

Here at Coins Auctioned, we’re all about the value and stories behind beloved collectible coins. We’ll be using that expertise today as we break down the history, varieties, and values of standing liberty quarters.

Pictured above: Obverse & reverse of 1916-P standing liberty quarter | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Historical Background

The US Mint first issued the standing liberty quarter in 1916 alongside a redesigned dime and half dollar. All three coins replaced the previous “Barber coinage” — named for their designer, US Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber — that had been in circulation since 1892.

Replacing Barber Coinage

Numerous coins were redesigned as part of the “Renaissance of American Coinage” during the first two decades of the 1900s. President Theodore Roosevelt kicked it off with the Saint-Gaudens double eagle in 1907, followed by the other gold coins, the Lincoln cent in 1909, and the buffalo nickel in 1913.

Barber coinage — the dime, quarter, and half dollar series created by Charles E. Barber — was coming up on 25 years of circulation. According to 1890 legislation, that meant the coins could be redesigned in 1916 (much to the relief of the coins’ many critics).

Mint Director Robert W. Woolley first had Barber make three new, unique designs for each coin in early 1915. The two men presented the designs to the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) in December 1915, but the committee didn’t like them; instead, the CFA invited three sculptors to submit sketches instead: Albin Polasek, Adolph Weinman, and Hermon MacNeil.

The sculptors submitted their sketches in February 1916. Weinman’s sketches were chosen for the half dollar (Walking Liberty) and dime (Mercury). MacNeil’s sketches were chosen for what ended up being the standing liberty quarter.
Pictured above: Hermon Atkins MacNeil around 1907 published in "The Sculptors MacNeil—The Varied Work of Mr. Hermon A. MacNeil and Mrs. Carol Brooks MacNeil" by Jean Standbury Holden in October 1907 | Image credit: George G. Rockwood, Public domain

Creating & Issuing the Standing Liberty Quarters

The Treasury announced the new quarters, dimes, and half dollars in March with a tentative date of May 1916 for the dies to be ready. Woolley told Barber his sketches weren’t chosen and he had to help MacNeil finalize his coin models.

True to his reputation at the time, Barber made his disappointment obvious and caused many unnecessary hurdles for MacNeil. The models were approved by May 23, but the road ahead wasn’t fully paved yet.

In addition to delays caused by petty disputes with Barber, more delays occurred because of issues translating the sketches to coins that stamped effectively. The Mint’s tentative date of May 1916 kept getting pushed back, and a growing shortage of dimes and quarters — none had been minted since 1915 — led to growing unrest.

The Mint ended up using the Barber designs again in the meantime and modifying MacNeil’s design — which had been approved in August — without MacNeil’s knowledge or approval.

Believing they were required by law to replace the Barber coinage in 1916, the Philadelphia Mint ended up coining 52,000 standing liberty quarters in December 1916. These 1916-dated standing liberty quarters weren’t released until the first set of 1917-dated ones on January 17, 1917.

Pictured above: Obverse & reverse of 1917 Type 2 standing liberty quarter | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

First Redesign

After the first quarters were released among numismatists and officials in early January, MacNeil ordered some on January 6, 1917. Upset that his design was modified without his knowledge, he wrote to Mint Director F.H. von Engelken (who’d taken the role in September 1916) with his critiques.

The 1916 and 1917 quarters were released to the public on January 17, 1917. But von Engelken allowed MacNeil to come to the Philadelphia Mint on January 30 to modify the dies. MacNeil tried to combine two of his approved obverses but couldn’t do so with the technology of the time.

The resulting modifications were done in February 1917 and included changes to the eagle on the reverse and more notably, a chainmail covering of Liberty on the obverse rather than the initial version with her right breast exposed.

While some numismatists believe MacNeil chose the new chainmail version, others point to the political influence of Society for the Suppression of Vice members on the Treasury Department, claiming they pushed back against the “immoral” nature of the bare-breasted version.

A government press release in August 1917 claimed the real reason for the change was to limit germ accumulation on the coins, while an editorial in the November 1917 issue of The Numismatist claims the chainmail represented a position of strength and protection as America was joining World War I.

Regardless, the redesign was done in mid-February right as Raymond T. Baker became the new Mint Director. Baker realized the changes may not be allowed under the 1892 legislation, so the issue went to Congress.

Congress finally approved the changes in July 1917.

Problems with Striking

MacNeil made changes due to issues from an artistic perspective, but there were many more issues from a minting perspective. The main issue was the unprotected date: the mintage year wasn’t underneath anything raised, so it wore down extremely fast, leading to many “dateless” standing liberty quarters similar to an issue with buffalo nickels.

A similar second problem was about Ms. Liberty’s head. Since Liberty’s head was the highest point of the design (most raised), many instances of weak striking led to more than half of the Liberty head design details being lost.

The unprotected date wouldn’t be fixed until the introduction of Type 3 standing liberty quarters in 1925, which had the date recessed lower than the rim. The modified design didn’t fix any other relief problems, though, so other flaws from weak strikes remained.

Yet another scandal surrounding the standing liberty quarter came decades later.

Pictured above: Photo of Doris Doscher featured in "The Girl on the Quarter" by Marguerite Norse, published in The Sunday Tribute XL on May 20, 1917 | Image credit: Unknown author, Public domain

Who Was Ms. Standing Liberty?

Early on in 1917, MacNeil’s depiction of Liberty was said to be modeled after Doris Doscher (who later went by Doris Doree). Doscher was an American model and actress in silent films who also modeled for Diana (1910) and Pomona atop the Pulitzer Fountain (1915), both sculptures by Karl Bitter.

However, Doscher died in 1970 and within a year or two, newspapers started publishing reports that Broadway actress Irene MacDowell was the true model for Ms. Standing Liberty.

Some reports alleged that MacDowell’s role was covered up because her husband, who played tennis with MacNeil, was jealous or disapproving of it. Other reports claimed it was covered up to prevent jealousy from MacNeil’s wife.

Doris Doscher’s widower stated in 1982 that it was indeed his wife that modeled for the coin, but numismatists and historians still debate on it.

End of Standing Liberty Quarter

The last standing liberty quarter issue was in 1930. Due to lower demand during the Great Depression, no mints produced quarters in 1931.

The year 1932 marked the 200th birthday of the first US President George Washington, so the mint produced the Washington quarter that year in commemoration.

Instead of the original plan to do a one-year commemorative half dollar that featured George Washington, Congress decided to start an ongoing new quarter series depicting the beloved founding father.

The Washington quarter helped spur the trend of replacing depictions of Liberty on coinage with real historical American figures. This trend started with the Lincoln cent in 1909 continuing through the Kennedy half dollar in 1964, which completed the depiction of former presidents on all circulating US coins.

Specifications & Types

First, let’s go over the standing liberty quarter specs:

• Weight: 6.25 g (0.22 oz)

• Diameter: 24.26 mm (0.96 in)

• Thickness: 1.75 mm

• Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper

• Edge: Reeded

How much silver is in a standing liberty quarter? Circulated standing liberty quarters contained 0.18084 troy oz (~5.62 grams) of pure silver.

Types of Standing Liberty Quarters

The standing liberty quarter series includes two types overall, though they’re often categorized as three types:

1. Type 1 No Stars Below Eagle or Bared Breast (1916-1917): First variety produced from December 1917 to July-August 1917; Mintage of around 12.2 million

2. Type 2 or 2a Stars Below Eagle or Pedestal Date or Chainmail Breast (1917-1924): Revised design approved by Congressional act passed in July 1917, first issued around July-August 1917; Major changes being chainmail on Liberty (obverse) & three stars below eagle (reverse); Mintage of around 141 million

3. Type 3 or 2b Recessed Date (1925-1930): Same as previous Type 2 version but with recessed date to protect from wearing off; Mintage of about 73 million

The shift mid-year in 1917 means that some SLQs are specified as “Type 1” (e.g. 1917-S Type 1) while others are “Type 2” (e.g. 1917-S Type 2).

Pictured above: Preliminary sketch by Hermon MacNeil for the standing liberty quarter reverse, initialed by Mint Director Robert Woolley | Image credit: Heritage website

Design and Symbolism

The design elements that Hermon MacNeil chose combined traditional and modern symbolism of American culture.

Lady Liberty and the bald eagle had been depicted on American coins for decades, both representing freedom and strength. The thirteen stars represent the 13 original colonies. The phrase “E Pluribus Unum” was the country’s traditional motto, Latin for “out of many, one.” The newer official motto “In God We Trust” was adopted post-Civil War.

Like Weinman’s walking liberty half dollar, the combination of an olive branch and shield represented the nation’s desire for peace but willingness to defend herself. The resemblance of the walls beside Liberty to battlements may also reflect this idea.

Many numismatists interpret the change from bare-breasted to chainmail-claden Liberty in 1917 as symbolic of the national state of affairs. As the US was entering World War I, it made more sense to present Liberty as ready for battle instead of vulnerable to enemies.

Pictured above: Obverse variations on standing liberty quarter, from left to right: 1917 Type 1, 1917 Type 2, 1925 Type 3 | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Obverse Design

The obverse (heads side) of standing liberty quarters depicts a full figure of Lady Liberty, her head facing left (viewer’s right) and her right leg (viewer’s left) in stride coming out of her draped covering. Her hair is pulled back in a cap, with cords and leaves above her ear.

She holds a round shield (emblazoned with rivets and the union shield) in her left hand. Her right hand is outstretched holding an olive branch. On either side of her are parapets (low walls). The crenellations have vertical lines of stars (thirteen total) and the inscription “IN GOD WE TRVST” — the “V” instead of “U” was a common stylistic choice. “LIBERTY” is inscribed along the upper rim.

Notable modifications to the standing liberty quarter design were in:

• Early 1917 (Type 1): Barber modified dies for early 1917 issues, making olive branch leaves narrower & more spread apart, adjusting Liberty’s drapery above “19” in the mintage year, adjusting Liberty’s toe position, making the stars in higher relief, and bringing the star below the “W” in “WE” slightly up

• Mid 1917 (Type 2 or 2a): Liberty’s torso (and formerly bare breast) is covered in chainmail, her hair is in a more helmet-like cap, a rounded hole is added for her ear, and there are fewer, more spaced out rivets on her shield; Fields (background) are smoothed & more concave

• 1925 (Type 3 or 2b): Mintage year recessed, rim and pedestal above it raised

The letter “M” on the standing liberty quarter (to the right of the bottom right star) is the designer MacNeil’s initial.

Pictured above: Reverse variations on standing liberty quarter, from left to right: 1917 Type 1, 1917 Type 2, and 1925 Type 3 | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Reverse Design

The standing liberty quarter reverse (tails side) features an eagle with wings outstretched in flight, facing right. The inscription “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” is along the upper rim, with “E PLVRIBVS VNVM” in smaller font below it.

The inscription “QUARTER DOLLAR” (or “QUARTER•DOLLAR”) is along the bottom rim. There are thirteen stars in total, but their placement differs by variety:

• Early 1917 (Type 1): Inscriptions written as “UNITED • STATES” and “QUARTER•DOLLAR” along top and bottom rims respectively, seven stars to the left & six stars to the right, eagle placed lower (less centered)

• Mid 1917 (Type 2): Eagle moved up so tip of wings overlap the “A” in “AMERICA,” three stars added below eagle with five stars on each side, no dot between “UNITED” and “STATES” or “QUARTER” and “DOLLAR” inscriptions, fields (background) smoothed & more concave

Some controversy arose from ornithologists who claimed the eagle wasn’t anatomically correct, but it didn’t last long or reach many members of the public.

Minting and Production

From 1916 to 1930, a total of 226,770,400 standing liberty quarters were minted. Three branches minted the coins, denoted by their mint mark on the quarter’s obverse:

• None — Philadelphia Mint

• “S” — San Francisco Mint

• “D” — Denver Mint

Where is the mint mark on standing liberty quarters? The standing liberty mint mark, if present, is located on the obverse (heads side) above the mintage year and pedestal, left of Liberty’s foot.

No standing liberty quarters were minted in 1922 as there was an excess of circulated coinage from 1916 to 1920 and the 1921 economic depression led to lower demand.

Additionally, the Denver and San Francisco mints did not produce standing liberty quarters in 1916, 1921, 1922, and 1925. Denver also didn’t mint the quarters in 1923 or 1930.

Most standing liberty quarters (about 69%) were from the Philadelphia Mint. Around 18% were from the San Francisco Mint while around 13% were from the Denver Mint.

Besides the first 1916-P issue made in December (with a 52,000 mintage), the lowest mintage issue was 1927-S at 396,000. The highest mintage issue was 1920-P at 27,860,000.

With mintage in mind, how much is a standing liberty quarter worth? It depends on a few factors.

Pictured above: Obverse & reverse of 1920-S Standing Liberty quarter graded MS64 by PCGS | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Collecting and Grading

The value of standing liberty quarters is always higher than the coin’s face value of 25 cents. But the exact value of a standing liberty quarter depends on:

• Current Silver Spot Price: The high silver content of these quarters already increases their value, but the market value (“spot price”) of silver fluctuates. You can check the current spot price of silver here.

• Variety: Given the striking issues early on, consistently well-struck Type 3 standing liberty quarters are easier to find in higher grades. Meanwhile, well-struck Type 2 SLQs are rarer and more sought-after.

• Rarity: Issues with low mintages (fewer were struck) or low survival (fewer are still around today) are more valuable. Rarity can also mean an issue that’s rarely found in high grades, like certain Full-Head issues discussed later.

• Mint Errors: Unintentional errors, especially if rare or dramatic, can be particularly valuable.

• Demand: The current popularity of standing liberty quarters (or particular issues) fluctuates, so their market value fluctuates.

• Condition: A more well-preserved standing liberty quarter will fetch higher prices, especially if it’s from an issue with low survival in higher grades.

Condition is typically given as a grade by a professional third-party service like Professional Coin Grading Services (PCGS) or Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC).

Grades

Different coin grading systems exist, but the general terms for grading standing liberty quarters are:

1. Uncirculated: Never circulated & properly stored; Looks like it did the day it was minted

2. Mint State (MS): Like Uncirculated but with sub-grades from 60 to 70 for many visible marks to flawless, respectively

3. Specimen (SP): Definition varies among grading agencies, but generally between a Mint State and Proof grade

4. About Uncirculated (AU): Very minor wear on high points of design from brief circulation, well-preserved surfaces, near-complete mint luster; Sub-grades from 50 to 58

5. Extremely Fine (EF or XF): Complete details, light wear on high points; Sub-grades 40 & 45

6. Very Fine (VF): Moderate to complete details, wear on high points; Sub-grades 20 to 35

7. Fine (F): 50 percent or less of detail flat, visible to sharp letters & digits; Sub-grades 12 & 15

8. Very Good (VG): Wear throughout, letters & digits soft but readable; Sub-grades 8 & 10

9. Good (G): Outer letters & digits full to slightly worn, slightly worn to sharp rims; Sub-grades 4 & 6

10. About Good (AG-3): Mostly readable letters & digits, worn rims

11. Fair (FR-2): Some visible details, traces of outer letters, flat

12. Poor (PO-1): Only date, mint mark, and year identifiable

An additional designation unique to standing liberty quarters is FH, meaning “Full Head.”

Pictured above: Obverse & reverse of 1927-S standing liberty quarter with full head designation, graded MS66+FH by PCGS | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Full Head (FH) Designation

Since there were striking issues and inconsistencies with Type 1 and Type 2 standing liberty quarters, an important grading designation is if the coin is Full Head (FH) or flat head (non-FH). This designation is similar to Full Bell Lines (FBL) for Franklin halves or Full Bands (FB) for Mercury dimes.

PCGS applies the Full Head grade to standing liberty quarters graded AU50 or higher that meet certain criteria based on their type.

Besides the AU50 grade, the PCGS Full Heads criteria for Type 1 (1916-1917) standing liberty quarters is “a clear and distinct separation between Miss Liberty’s hair cords and her cap” while the Type 2 (1917-1924) criteria is “when the helmet exhibits three complete and distinct leaves, a complete outline on the bottom of the helmet, and a clear ear hole on Miss Liberty’s head.”

The only exception? The 1918/7-S overdate standing liberty quarter. If one of these rare error coins meets the Type 2 criteria above, it only needs a grade of XF40 or higher to get a Full Head designation.

Most Type 1 and 2 issues are rarer and/or more valuable with an FH designation. The rarest Full Head issue is the 1927-S standing liberty quarters.

Full Rivets Designation

Full Rivets isn’t an official designation but it can be important. Besides the Full Head requirements, another sign of a good strike is full, distinct rivets on the obverse shield. Full rivets combined with a Full Head designation is a major value booster.

Pictured above: Close-up detail of 1918/7 overdate error on obverse of standing liberty quarter | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Free use

Key Dates and Varieties

“Key dates” are coins that are harder to find, meaning collectors will often pay more for them. A coin may be a “key date” due to a low mintage, famous mint error, low survival, or low survival in high grades.

Key Dates

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the lowest-mintage 1916-P issue is the primary key date for standing liberty quarters. These specimens can be worth around $4,000 even with just Good (G) grades, reaching over $200,000 for MS67-FH specimens.

The second official key date is 1927-S. With the second lowest mintage and a low survival rate in high grades, these specimens are truly a rarity. A 1927-S standing liberty quarter with an FH designation can be worth up to $425,000!

Other standing liberty quarter key dates and their values include:

• 1920-D: Low survival rate in high grades; Worth up to $425,000 with FH designation

• 1919-S: Relatively low mintage & low survival rate in high grades; Worth up to $300,000 with FH designation

• 1919-D: Relatively low mintage & low survival rate in high grades; Worth up to $215,000 with FH designation

• 1921-P: Low survival rate; Worth up to $100,000 with FH designation

• 1920-S: Low survival rate in high grades; Worth up to $100,000 with FH designation

• 1923-S: Low survival rate & relatively low mintage; Worth up to $75,000 with FH designation

Errors

Among standing liberty quarter errors, one leads the way: the 1918/7-S overdate. These rare coins were first noticed in the 1930s. The error occurred when engravers recut a 1917-S Type 2 die for the 1918-S issues, resulting in the “7” being visible under the “8.”

Only around 3,000 are estimated to exist, with about 10 of those grading MS65 or higher. The most valuable 1918/7-S overdate standing liberty quarters (with an FH designation) are worth over $400,000!

Other known errors on standing liberty quarters include:

• 1929-S Obverse Die Clash: Worth $20 to $975

• 1920-S Clashed Dies: Worth $60 to $500

• 1917-D Type 1 Doubled Die Reverse (DDR): Worth $60 to $350

• 1928-S Inverted Mint Mark (IMM): Worth $80 to $300

• 1920-P Clashed Dies: Worth $10 to $275

• 1928-S Repunched Mint Mark (RPM): Worth $25 to $60

Pictured above: Obverse & reverse of 2016-W gold Standing Liberty commemorative quarter | Image credit: PCGS CoinFacts, Public domain

Modern Gold Commemoratives

While the circulated standing liberty quarter ended in 1930, the design wasn’t gone forever.

In 2016, the US Mint released a special set of the three coins (Mercury dime, standing liberty quarter, and walking liberty half dollar) originally issued in 1916 as part of the Centennial Gold Coin Program.

Each coin was minted in 24K (99.99% pure) gold with the original designs. The gold standing liberty quarter was a 1/4-oz bullion coin (0.25 troy oz of pure gold) with the original Type 1 bare-breasted Liberty design from 1916.

The gold commemorative quarter was released on September 8, 2016. Though not as popular as the immediately-sold-out gold Mercury dime, the quarter was still a hit, selling over 85,000 of its limited 100,000 mintage.

Collectors were excited to see the beloved historical design brought to life again in a gorgeous, even more valuable form.

Standing Liberty Quarters: A Beautiful Reflection of American Progress

Hermon MacNeil’s standing liberty quarter may have only lasted 15 years, but it managed to make an everlasting impact in that short time. Despite controversies both within and outside the mint, the standing liberty quarter was a welcomed change and widely adored for its artistry, collectibility, and rich history.

Browse our array of standing liberty quarters and other US coins today!

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