Rare P Mint Marks

The Philadelphia Mint was established in 1792. Since it was the only operating United States Mint in the earliest decades of a new Nation, coins produced at the Philadelphia Mint did not carry mint marks. When the Mint branches in Charlotte, Dahlonega, and New Orleans opened in 1838, mint marks made their first appearance on U.S. coins. The practice of not identifying Philadelphia’s coins continued even after the first branches were established.
The Philadelphia “P” mint mark made its first appearance in 1942. Nickel was removed from five-cent coins during World War II, the “P” mint mark first appeared on coins produced in Philadelphia. These coins were struck in 35% silver. They were issued fron 1942-1945 and the mint mark’s position also moved from the right of Monticello to above the dome to indicate the new metal composition. After the war, when use of the regular alloy resumed, the mint mark returned to its former position and the Mint no longer used Philadelphia’s “P.”
In 1979, the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin was introduced. It was America's first small size dollar. This was also the first circulating coin to feature an identifiable woman. It honors Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906), the woman’s rights pioneer whose work led to the 19th Amendment to the Constitution that assures women the right to vote. Once again, the “P” mint mark appeared. The following year, 1980, the “P” appeared on all of the denominations except the cent.
In 2017, to honor of the U.S. Mint’s 225th anniversary, the “P” mint mark appeared for the first time on circulating cents. The 2017-P Lincoln cent became the first-ever United States one-cent coin to bear Philadelphia’s “P” mintmark. This change was only for the 2017 issued cents and in 2018 the “P” mint mark once again disappeared from circulating cents.