Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents

Flying Eagle & Indian Head cents are among the most beloved and widely collected U.S. small cents, steeped in American history, artistry, and numismatic intrigue. In the freshly updated edition of Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents, award-winning author Richard Snow examines these iconic coins in great depth and detail, covering everything from their origins and designs to detailed mintage data, die varieties, and current market values.

Flying Eagle cents, struck for circulation only from 1857 to 1858, were the nation’s first small cents and marked a significant shift in U.S. coinage. Their bold design and short lifespan make them a must-have for collectors. Indian Head cents, minted from 1859 to 1909, spanned decades of American growth and transformation, from the Civil War through the dawn of the 20th century.

Whether you’re a seasoned numismatist or just beginning your collecting journey, this reference guide is essential for understanding why Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents continue to capture the imagination and enthusiasm of collectors more than a century after their release.

Inside you’ll find:

• Values in up to nine grades per coin, including Brown, Red-Brown, and Red
• Mintages for all circulation and Proof strikes
• Grading guide
• Over 400 color images
• Mint errors, toned Proofs, patterns, counterfeit and altered coins
• Illustrated study of exonumia by Charmy Harker, the Penny Lady(R)
• More than 350 unique Greysheet ID (GSID) numbers listed
• Die varieties
• And much more!

Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of small cents with the all-new fourth edition of Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents, part of Whitman’s renowned Red Book Series. This acclaimed series spans nearly 30 volumes, each providing in-depth coverage of specific U.S. coin types and programs featured in the Official Red Book.

Rick Snow has had a passion for coins since 1972, when a local coin dealer in his hometown of Whippany, New Jersey, ignited his interest. After ten years in the hobby, being a local coin club president, small-coin shop counter-person and active collector, Rick fell out of collecting to work in the real world. This departure endured only six years. In 1986 he became senior numismatist to a Tucson coin dealer, Allstate Coin. While working for Allstate Rick developed an interest and expert knowledge in Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents. This quickly translated into the development of a national coin club devoted to these coins--The Flying Eagle and Indian Cent Collectors Society, or Fly-In Club. The club is still going strong more than 35 years later. Rick also wrote the first book devoted to these coins in 1992. That book transformed into The Flying Eagle and Indian Cent Attribution Guide and in 2014 was published in its third edition. It is the official listing of all varieties of these series and is a two-volume 900-page book.

In 1993 Rick began his own coin dealership, Eagle Eye Rare Coins. In its first year it was based in Tucson, Arizona, but between 1993 and 2000 it was based in Seattle, Washington, with Brian Wagner as a partner. Since 2000, Eagle Eye has been based back in Tucson. You can usually catch Rick at any major show around the country with his Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents. You can visit his business online at Great Coins.com. Eagle Eye Photo Seal was the first certified-holder acceptance system. It was begun in 1996 and has been hugely successful in labeling correctly graded Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents. Eagle Eye makes a market in Photo Sealed coins. After 20 years (in 2016), Eagle Eye Photo Sea lhas become the accepted standard in the Flying Eagle and Indian Head cent community. It assures that full-red coins are really full red and coins are graded correctly by the major grading services. This has helped prevent the abuse of over grading by grading services.

In 2016 Rick announced a new grading system. The PDS grading system, as it is called, is detailed in this book. The system uses the Official ANA Grading Standard’s adjectival grades with a Planchet-Die-Strike qualifier rating the quality of each of those aspects on a particular coin. The benefits can be seen when comparing coins graded with the 70-point Sheldon system. For many years collectors have seen the problem of grading inflation in certified holders take control of the market. Hopefully the PDS grading system will help reverse this trend.