In 1840, Christian Gobrecht's coronet Quarter Eagle ($2.50 gold piece) made its appearance.  This style was adopted by the mint to conform to the larger denomination $5 and $10 gold coins.  The Liberty Quarter Eagle was minted at the five provincial mints in Philadelphia, Denver, Charlotte, Dehlonega, and New Orleans and many rarities abound.  All Charlotte and Dahlonega coins minted from 1840-1860 are elusive while the "Little Princess" of 1841 was struck only in proof condition and is exceedingly rare.  In 1848 a Quarter Eagle was struck which featured CAL above the eagle's head on the reverse.  It is assumed that this was done to commemorate the opening of the San Francisco Mint and to differentiate between Quarter Eagles struck from gold mined in California and Quarter Eagles struck from gold mined from other regions of the country.  Also of major rarity is the 1854-S of which just 246 were struck and the 1875 with only 400 minuted for circulation and 20 proofs for collectors. 

 

The Liberty Quarter Eagle was minuted until 1907 and represented the longest running coin series without a modification or change in design.  The coin was replaced by the Indian design by Bella Lyon Pratt in 1908.