The 1861-S quarter eagle is a relatively very scarce coin in any grade of preservation. The total mintage, 24,000 pieces largely entered circulation, and stayed there for at least some period. As such, any pieces in high grade become rare, a scenario with many Civil War dated coins that were struck at the San Francisco Mint. Unlike the gold coins from the Philadelphia Mint, which, during the first few years were produced in considerable numbers, these were not widely hoarded. The influence of the Civil War on everyday life in California remained minimal, and circulation of coinage continued more or less as before.

The reasons of the minimal influence the Civil War had on California and Californians are not surprising. Inaugurated as a state just a decade before the Civil War, California was still "fresh" compared to the eastern states, which had a much longer (politically and military) history. The state of California was more or less born out of need, after gold was discovered in January of 1848 and large numbers of prospectors entered the area in 1849 and subsequent years.

Because of the rapid increase in population, the territory became a state in September of 1850. At the time, the state was completely separated from any other state, and the closest state was Texas thousands of miles away. By the time the Civil War commenced in 1861, California was joined by Oregon to its north, which had become a state in 1859. In-between were a number of territories, occupied by (re)located Native Americans and pioneers who tried to live a hard life in the wilderness.

Yet, even with the remote location California had in comparison with the other states, there was still an influence on the Civil War. First of all, there were the large amounts of gold that was still coming out of the mines. Most of this was shipped east, mostly by ship over Panama and up the coast to the Northern states. This gold largely paid for the huge sums that the War required, and as such helped the United States to (re)gain control over the Southern states and the Confederacy.

No battles were fought in California, but even in military California played a minor role. California was a free state, as decided at the constitutional convention in 1849. As such, California was considered to be a Northern state, although Southern sympathizers tried to be separated on several accounts. This was especially the case in the rural areas of Southern California, where gold had not been found and the land was mostly occupied by small farmers. These people did not feel related to Northern California at all and wished a separate territory. This failed however on all accounts, and the State stayed under control in full of the United States during the hectic period of the Civil War.

The rarity of the 1861-S quarter eagle in higher grades, and in all grades as well as this issue remains hard to locate even in lower grades, is truly underestimated. A very limited number of pieces can be designated as being uncirculated coins, but above About Uncirculated any coin is a prime rarity. Most pieces are fairly well struck, although some weakness is usually encountered in the central areas. In lower grades, this issue remains very scarce, not bringing much premium over a commonly found issue of this era. As such, the conscious collector with an eye for bargains in the current market will have plenty of opportunities to include historical coins in collections assembled at modest costs.