Three Cent Silver (1851-1873)
Mint Mark Information

The Silver Three Cent piece was introduced in 1851. Sometimes called a “Trime”, the new coin was expected to help out with the purchase of postage stamps, which cost three cents to mail an ordinary letter.

The metallic composition was 75% silver, 25% copper. The silver content was well below the standard of 90% in other US coins.

If you were to guess that a Trime was very small because it contained only three cents of silver, you’d be correct. In fact, the Trime was barely over a half inch in diameter.

Because of its diminutive size, thinness, and white appearance, the Three Cent Silver coin was given a slang term during its time of active service: “fish scale”. Some people were indeed very imaginative in seeing any resemblance whatsoever between a Trime and a fish scale.

For the first few years of its existence, the Trime was an important coin in American life. Other US silver coins had difficulty remaining in circulation because their intrinsic silver content exceeded face value, resulting in large numbers being melted down or exported. The Trime was not doomed by this scenario since its silver content did not exceed three cents. From 1851 to 1853, more than 36 million Trimes were produced.

The importance of the Trime faded into oblivion starting in 1854. By then, Congress had reduced the silver weight in the other denominations, making them far more likely to remain in circulation. The last of the Three Cent Silver Trimes were struck in 1873.

Three Cent Silver Obverse

Three Cent Silver Reverse

The Three Cent Silver Mint Mark is located on reverse to the right. The only date with a Mint Mark is the 1851-O.

The following table lists the Mint Marks you might find on Three Cent Silver:

The only Three Cent Silver date with a Mint Mark is the 1851-O. All the others were struck at the Philadelphia Mint, meaning they have no Mint Marks, since the "P" Mint Mark did not come into usage until the 20th century.

An example of the Three Cent Silver is pictured at right, courtesy of Goldberg Coins.

The 1851-O is not particularly a key date; its future values are likely to increase at a sluggish pace, just as it has for many decades.

Instead, look at Trimes dated from 1863 to 1873. They were minted in very small numbers and have the best record of price hikes in the Silver Three Cent series:

1863-1873 Silver Three Cent