THE FIRST QUARTER DOLLARS were struck at the Carson City Mint in April 1870. Only two more small production runs of quarters, one in May and the other in August, would take place that year. This set the stage for low outputs of quarters at the Carson Mint during its first six years of operations. Only 44,792 (some sources say 58,542) quarters were struck between 1870  and 1873, none were struck in 1874, and 140,000 were struck in 1875.

All dates from 1870 to 1873 are scarce, with the 1873-CC Without Arrows quarter showing an extant population of just five specimens. The 1875-CC quarter is underrated and undervalued as of 2009. And the 1878-CC, with its mintage total of 996,000, is much scarcer than most collectors realize.

The two most prominent dates, the 1876-CC and 1877-CC, reflect the massive output which occurred at the Carson City Mint during the heart of the Big Bonanza on period the Comstock Lode.