This year the 1908S Indian Cent hallmarks a century of its existence and most importantly, a century of wealth in American history. The 1908S Indian Cent is a coin which can take us back to the past and remind us of what the world was probably like 100 years ago.

Reflecting back a century ago, television and radio were still not on horizon and people had to look for creative ways to keep themselves entertained. Such as playing poker by using coins instead of dollar bills as payment. Or, by using coins to play pitch and toss and who knows, maybe the 1908S Indian cent was one of the coins being tossed.

During this same time period most people had to work 50 hours a week and they would either have to walk or ride a bike to work. In those days, the 1908S Indian cent also circulated throughout the country, either in pockets of individuals who walked or rode a bike since the one cent coin was widely used at the time.

The 1908S cent is a significant coin in the sense that it had the honor of being the first one cent coin ever to be produced by the San Francisco Mint. It also has the third lowest mintage for the entire circulation strike Indian cent series. However, because the 1908S Indian cent was released just a year prior to the introduction of the very popular Lincoln cent, it was hardly preserved or hoarded. With the small mintage of the 1908S Indian cent, not too many examples survive today compared to its original mintage of 1,115,000. Incidentally, if one were to compare the 1908S Indian cent to other coins of the era, the 1908S Indian cent seems to be a great bargain today.

Take for example the 1914D Lincoln cent with a mintage of 1,193,000 or a slightly higher mintage than the 1908S. The 1914D is more expensive than the 1908S Indian cent by a large margin even though the 1908S is much scarcer than the 1914D.

The chart below reflects the PCGS Price Guide price differences between the 1908S and the 1914D cent in different grades. In circulated grades the 1908S is less expensive by approximately 5 times compared to the 1914D. In higher grades the 1914D becomes even much more expensive compared to the 1908S Indian Cent.

Additionally, the PCGS population figures also indicate that the 1908S Indian cent is much scarcer with a total of 1916 coins graded by PCGS in all grades combined. Compare this to the 1914D, where PCGS has graded 3,364 coins combined.

The 1908S Indian cent has many important attributes besides its potential value. First, the coin turned 100 years old this year and it is a coin that reminds us that no matter how poor, broke or how much in debt we are, we are much wealthier today compared to 100 years ago or at any other time in American history.

Today, many individuals only need to work 40 hour jobs and don't need to walk or ride a bike to work unless they choose too. Also, today just about anyone in this country can listen to multiple radio stations or watch tens of thousands of different television programs of their choice. In fact, in 1908 if the richest individual in the world decided to watch a game of football or baseball between the best players in the country, it would have been nearly impossible or it would have cost a fortune to accomplish. Today, just about anyone rich, poor or in debt can watch the best football or baseball players in the country compete against each other in the comfort of their own home, for a low monthly satellite or cable fee.

Ultimately, the 1908S Indian cent and numismatics are two beneficial things that can help us reflect on how life was 100 years ago and at the same time, assist us in appreciating what we have today.