Let's step back just a little bit further in history before we go into the crime of 1873.
Between 1792 - 1873 the United States Dollar was backed by both gold and silver at a ratio of 15:1 this was known as bimetallism. Bimetallism is a system of allowing two metals as legal tender at a a fixed ratio to each other. By 1834 the value of silver had dropped to a ratio of 16:1. Silver production was on the rise as was gold with the discovery of gold in California.
What year was gold discovered in California?
The California gold rush began on January 24th, 1848 at the Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The gold rush brought about 300,000 people to California. People from all over the United States and abroad found their way to California. Gold-seekers were also called the "forty-niners" since they were rushing to California in 1849.
At the same time that more gold was being produced so was the silver. Dr. Henry Linderman understood that silver production was on the rise as more and more mines opened more and more silver would be found. Plus the transcontinental railroad would be complete in 1869. Before the market was flooded with silver Linderman called for the demonetization of silver. By doing so he would lower the price of silver which would make it possible to bring cheap Silver in to be coined into dollars thus inflating the economy.
The Coinage Act of 1873 or the Crime of 73?
This is the where the coinage act of 1873 comes in. The coinage act of 1873 embraced the gold standard and demonetized silver. This is why it's also called the crime of 73 because gold became the only metallic standard for the United States.
Why was everyone calling it a crime? Now you could only deposit gold bullion for coinage. If you brought silver bullion you could have it cast into bars or coined into a trade dollar. This was also the last year for the Seated Liberty Dollar. This act ended the production of the silver dollar and authorized the creation of the trade dollar.
This pocket scale is great for lab chemicals, gun bullets, diamonds, Gemstones, Meteorites, silver & gold coins, bows, broadhead arrows, crafts, spices, herbs & tobacco, medications, mineral supplements, reloading powder or almost any other material imaginable! High quality strain gauge load cell system makes it accurate in full capacity range. High density ABS housing and metal support makes it very durable. Impressive accuracy, repeatability, off center, and linearity. Large high contrast LCD display makes the readouts clear to read. TARE function makes it much easier to weigh liquid or powder. Cover can be used as a tray.
Morgan Dollar
Value: 1 United States Dollar
Mass: 26.73g (412.5 grains)
Diameter 38.1 mm (1.5 inches)
Edge: Reeded
Composition: 90% Silver and 10% Copper
Years Minted: 1878-1904, 1921
Mint Marks None (Philadelphia)
CC - Carson City
S - San Francisco
O - Denver
The Coinage Act of 1792 is what brought to life the United States Mint. At the time Philadelphia was the nation's capitol therefore the first mint facility was built there..
The first building (1792-1833) For the low price of $4,266.67 two lots were purchased on Seventh Street and 631 filbert Street. First things first... they demolished an abandoned whiskey distillery on the property and started work on the smelt house. Next facing seventh street was the mint building with "Ye Olde Mint" painted on the front of this three-story building. The basement held the gold and silver in vaults, the first floor was for housed deposits, weighing room, and press room. The second floor was for mint official offices and the third was the assay office. Between the smelt house and the"Ye Olde Mint" office was the mill house.
The first building (1792-1833)
Second Building (1833-1901) On July 4th , 1829 at the intersection of Chestnut and juniper the first cornerstone was laid for the second Philadelphia Mint., the Grecian Temple. The building opened in January of 1833. Even though this mint building was more impressive in space and image (white marble with classic Greek style columns) by 1900 the nation had gone from 13 million to 76 million demand brought on the third building.
Second Building (1833-1901)
Third Building (1901-1969) Located at 1700 Spring garden Street this mint could produce. In one year the third Philadelphia mint produced 501,000,000 coins plus 90,000,000 coins for foreign countries. The building was aquired by the Community College of Philadelphia in 1973
Third Building (1901-1969)
Current Building (1969-Present) Just two blocks from where it all began at the "Ye Olde Mint" Building the fourth mint building is constructed. Listen to this number.... This Philadelphia mint can produce one million coins in thirty minutes!
Early Dollar Coins - The Coinage Act of 1792 authorized the production of dollar coins from silver. In the early years there is the Flowing Hair (1794-1795) and Draped Bust (1795-1804) Each die was hand engraved because of this dozens of varieties are known to exist.
The 1804 Dollar - The 1804 Dollar is one of the rarest and most famous coins! Records indicate that 19,750 silver dollars were struck in 1804. The only problem they all used the old but still usable dies dated 1803. It wasn't until 1834 when the U.S. Department of State was creating a set of coins as a gift that they used a die with an 1804 date. There are eight of these coins known to exist.
Seated Liberty Dollar (1836-1873) - denominations that had the Seated Liberty design was the half dime, the dime, the quarter, the half dollar, the silver dollar as well as the twenty cent piece. The Seated Liberty was minted in Philadelphia, New Orleans, San Francisco and Carson City
Gold Dollar Coins (1849-1889) Because the coin was composed of 90% pure gold take into account the high value of gold making this coin the second smallest coin in the US coinage history. First goes to the silver three cent piece.
Trade Dollar (1873-1885) - The Trade Dollar was minted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Carson City and San Francisco. The United States Congress started the Trade Dollar to improve trade with the Orient.
Morgan Dollar (1878-1904; 1921) - The Morgan dollar is named after the engraver George T. Morgan. On the obverse side of the coin their is a profile representing Liberty with the reverse an eagle with wings outstretched. The coin was minted between 1878-1904 and once again in 1921 thanks to the Pittman Act in 1918 that authorized the melting of millions of silver dollars. This allowed the Morgan Silver Dollar to resume mintage for one final year in 1921!
Peace Dollar (1921-1935; 1964) - The Peace Dollar was minted from 1921 to 1928 and again in 1934 and 1935. Anthony De Francisci is the designer of the Peace Dollar. A contest was held and he was the the winner. They were looking for a design that said "Peace"
Release of Dollars by the United States Treasury, the GSA Sale -Of course the size and weight of a dollar coin made them not a favorite. Between the 1930's to the early 1960's bags were released to banks in order to be distributed as gifts which folks thought made a good Christmas gift.. Then a rare 1903-O Morgan Silver Dollar was found which made the treasury think twice about just handing them out like that. Next the GSA General Services Administration was authorized to sell these coins to the public in a series of mail-bid sales.
Eisenhower Dollar (1971-1978) - Designed by Chief Engraver Frank Gasparro. On the obverse depicting Dwight D. Eisenhower and the reverse is an insignia of the Apollo 11 moon landing. There was also a 1976 bicentennial commemorative design minted between 1975-1976 this design had the liberty bell and the moon on the reverse, but the obverse still had Eisenhower.
Susan B. Anthony Dollar (1979-1981: 1999) - Sometimes called Suzy or Susan B the coin depicted Susan B. Anthony the first non-fictitious woman portrayed on a coin. As for size it was almost the same size as the quarter. Because of this fact it was never a big hit therefore it had a short run. However it was brought back in 1999 for one year when the Treasury reserves were low.
Sacagawea Dollar (2000-present) - No verified image exists of Sacagawea so designer Glenna Goodacre used Randy'L He-dow Teton as Shoshone Indian as the model for the coin. The coin has not been released to the general public since 2001 as of 2011 the coin was still being minted for collectors. You can purchase uncirculated rolls, proof sets and mint sets.
Presidential Dollar Coin (2007-2011) - Presidential $1Coin Act was created they were hoping for the interest seen in the 50 State Quarters. The program was supposed to run until 2016 but was canceled to save money.
1792 - Coinage Act of 1792 -Coinage Act or the Mint Act passed by the United States of Congress in 1792 was established to regulate the coinage of the United States.
1794 - Silver dollars, the first dollar coin issue was minted in 1794 - Dollar coins have been minted in the United States as gold, silver and other base metal versions.
1873 - Crime of 1873 - Embraced the gold standard and demonetized silver.
1878 - Bland-Allison Act - The United States Treasury was required to buy a certain amount of silver so it could be circulated as silver dollars
1890 - Sherman Act - The act was named after is author John Sherman an Ohio Republican. In addition to the 2-4 million from the Bland-Allison Act the United States had to to purchase, now they had to purchase an additional 4.5 million ounces of silver bullion each month. The law required the treasury to by silver with treasury notes that could be redeemed for either silver or gold.
1893 - Sherman Act repealed - The plan failed instead there was a fear of a resulting drain on the Treasury''s gold reserves helped case the financial panic of 1893. Therefor the Sherman Act was repealed.
1898 - War Revenue Bill - Coin remaining Silver Bullion purchased under Sherman Act
1918 - Pittman Act - Stated that no more than 350,000,000 standard silver dollars be converted into bullion and sold or used for subsidiary silver coinage, and directed purchase of domestic silver for re-coinage.
If you collect Morgan Dollars then you have probably heard about of the Peace Dollar. The peace dollar was in Mint starting in 1921. So in 1921 we have the 1921 Morgan Dollar, but we also have the 1921 Peace Dollar!
If you collect Peace Dollars this book is for you! AGuide Book of Peace Dollars! On sale 27% off the list price of $19.95. Today it's only $14.61 plus FREE Super Saver Shipping!
Official Book Description:
A Guide Book of Peace Dollars is the 13th entry in Whitman's Bowers Series of numismatic references. It covers every date and mintmark of America's last 90% silver dollar, which began as a commemorative of peace after the tribulations of World War One. The book also studies the mysterious 1964-D Peace Dollar, as well as proofs, patterns, trial pieces, errors and misstrikes, countermarks, die varieties, and famous collections. Full Color, Softcover, 288 Pages, Fully Indexed.
A little history about the Peace Dollar:
The Peace Dollar was minted from 1921 to 1928 and then again in 1934 and 1935. A competition was held to find a design that said "peace" Anthony De Francisci won that competition! The Peace Dollar was first minted on December 28th,1921 seems pretty close to the end of the year. But in the small amount of time they were able to produce just over a million Peace Dollars with the date 1921!
All orders are Custom printed and made in the USA! No nails or glue needed to hang these up. Simply peel and stick! Today these Morgan Dollar Removable Graphics are selling for $33.99 in a variety of different sizes!
Official Product Description:
WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won't damage your paint or leave any mess. PLEASE double check the size of the image you are ordering prior to clicking the 'ADD TO CART' button. Our graphics are offered in a variety of sizes and prices.
WallMonkeys are intended for indoor use only.
Printed on-demand in the United States Your order will ship within 3 business days, often sooner. Some orders require the full 3 days to allow dark colors and inks to fully dry prior to shipping. Quality is worth waiting an extra day for!
Removable and will not leave a mark on your walls.
'Fotolia' trademark will be removed when printed.
Our catalog of over 10 million images is perfect for virtually any use: school projects, trade shows, teachers classrooms, colleges, nurseries, college dorms, event planners, and corporations of all size.
I think one of the best ways to get into coin collecting is start simple!
Pick a coin and try to collect every year the coin was ever minted. This Morgan Silver Dollars Date Album would make a great gift or a great gift for yourself. If you want to collect the Morgan Dollar by each date this album has got you covered. 3 pages hold one Morgan Dollar for each date between 1878-1904 plus 1921. If you're looking for a book that would display your year and mint this is not the book for you. It is organized only by year.
Coin collecting can become a life long passion for anyone. You can collect any way you want! Start with what is in your pocket or try to collect every state quarter. In 1999 the United States Mint produced a series of 50 quarter dollar coins each one had a special design honoring each state. States were produced in the order of their entrance into statehood. Those are always fun and achievable goal. You could collect the Kennedy 1964 - to date. And of course you can collect the Morgan Dollar! The list goes on and on just start somewhere anywhere and you too will understand why we love to collect the way we do.
It's not just about setting a goal and completing your collection, it's about the journey!
Official Product Description for the Morgan Silver Dollars Date Album:
This album includes 3 pages and holds one Morgan Dollar from each date 1878 to 1921
This is for a date set only and does not include the mintmarks
Dansco albums feature two gold-stamped posts within the brown leatherette binder to hold the pages in place
Clear plastic slides within each page ensure secure storage and allow for easy viewing of both sides of the coins
Made in the U.S.A.
If you're into collecting coins and want to know the value of a coin in your collection or perhaps your thinking about purchasing a new coin. It is good idea to have a Coin Guide Book. Keep in mind the coin market is a very active one so values are always changing. Think of the book as exactly what they call it a guide a starting point as you research your coin.
Do you have a kindle? If so you can get this for only $8.99 and have it with you where ever you go! I don't know if you have looked at kindles lately, but they have really come down in price. You can now get akindle for as low at $79.00
What would a buyer pay for a particular coin? That is why I like to do a little of my research on eBay for my Morgan Dollars. If you go to completed auctions you can see exactly what the market did pay for a particular coin. The more research you do as a buyer and seller the better!
Official Product Description:
Containing Mint records and wholesale prices for U.S. coins from 1616 to the present time, including colonials, regular issues, commemoratives, territorials,gold, Proof sets, and Mint sets. Information on collecting coins—how coins are produced—mints and mintmarks—grading of coins—location of mintmarks—preserving coins—starting a collection—history of mints—and interesting descriptions of all U.S. copper, nickel, silver, and gold coins. Illustrated.
Let's take a trip to South Carolina with Michael on his treasure hunt to find coins, relics and buried treasures! Today Michael finds his first Morgan Silver Dollar about 4-5 inches deep in the South Carolina sandy soil.
It's crazy how some Morgan Dollars come out of the ground looking almost new while others look like they have been in the ground since 1889! This particular coin looks like it has been in the ground for all that time, but it's still an amazing find!
1889 Silver Dollar - Philadelphia Mint had 21,726,000 circulation strikes
1889-CC - Carson City Mint had 350,000 circulation strikes.
1889-O - New Orleans Mint had 11,875,000 circulation strikes.
1889-S -San Francisco Mint had 700,000 circulation strikes.
YouTube Source - You can check out Nugget Noggin Channel. Retrieving History with Nugget Noggin!
Where did the Silver come from? The mints silver use to come mostly from Mexico and South America but since 1800's most of the silver came from mines in the United States.Usually you didn't find gold and silver all by it's self no, a gold nugget might have some silver ore or some lead and copper might contain silver ore. The California nugget usually held about 88% gold with the remaining being mostly silver. The lead and copper ores of the west contained silver as well. There were copper minerals of Utah, Arizona and Montana that contained Silver.
Now how to part the gold from silver. There were generally three methods used when parting. The nitric acid process was the oldest mostly used in the fifteenth century. The sulfuric acid which was in full swing by the 1880's followed by the electrolytic process which started in 1901. In the end simpler and cheaper won out. The advantages of the electrolytic process was it didn't require large quantities of silver and acids to process.
Now that you have your pure form of silver the first step would be to get you proportions correct which would be 900 parts pure silver to 100 part of pure copper. This melted mixture would be poured into ingots which were rolled flat to produce dollar planchets. There were many checks and balances along the way to ensure the correct proportions of silver/copper. Soon that silver was on it's way to becoming a Morgan Silver Dollar.
The entire process is amazing that they could find the precious metal tightly wrapped around each other and figure away to extract both the pure form of gold and pure form of silver with the end result being the Morgan Silver Dollar!
1884 Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 14,070,000
Proofs: 875
There is no mint mark on the coin which means it was minted in Philadelphia.
1884-CC Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 1,136,000
Proofs: 3
Minted in Carson City – CC
1884-S Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation Strikes: 3,200,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in San Francisco– S
1884-O Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 9,730,000
Proofs: 12
Minted in New Orleans– O
Random Facts of 1884
Chester A. Arthur was president of the United States at the time. He was in the white house from September 19th 1881 - March 4th, 1885
United States adopts standard time.
The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.
Worldwide the Long Depression was being felt which lasted from 1873-1896. At first it was called the Great Depression, but lost that name when the Great Depression came along in the 1930's.
Eleanor Roosevelt was born October 11th, 1864 - November 7th, 1962
Susan B. Anthony addresses the United States House Judiciary Committee arguing they amend the United States Constitution grant women the right to vote. Susan B. Anthony dollars were minted from 1979-1981 and again in 1999.
When the treasury holdings were getting low; dwindling from 180 million Morgan Dollars down to 28 million in 1964 the treasury decided to do an audit. Out of this audit 3 million Morgan Carson City Dollars were set aside and distributed by mail order.
The GSA (General Services Administration) took on a huge task in just the packaging aspect of the operation. Packaging started in mid-fall 1972 and didn’t finish until mid-summer 1973. Dr. Goldman assistant Director for Technology of the U.S. Mint came up with this idea for the assembly line to ensure no scratches or missed Silver Dollars
Store in vault
Counted
Obverse Inspected
Placed in plastic Insert
Dusted
Reverse Inspected
Placed in Clear Plastic Holder
Inspected
Placed in Presentation box with description
Inserted in Mailing carton
weight check
date stamp
packed
weighed
stored
mailed
Two assembly lines were set up consisting of 22 women on each line plus several supervisors and helpers to make sure nobody ran out of boxes and such. Each line could pack up to 10,000 boxes during an 8 hour shift. Security was top priority as you can image. Each box of 1,000 coins had its own seal and was recorded. You needed two people to open the vault which was guarded 24 hours a day by a security guard.
The final step…. Mailing!
Photo Source - Library of Congress.The photo is of Mrs. Edness Wilkens secretary to Nellie Tayloe Ross who was the director of the mint. At the time she lived two doors down from the mint and gave part of her silverware for the first coins, April 11th, 1938. A true coin collector!
1972-1974 GSA sold 3 million Morgan Carson City Dollars by mail order!
You might already know this, but when the first Morgan Dollar came out the public was not all that thrilled about idea. Because of this millions of these Morgan Dollars sat uncirculated. In 1962-1963 some scarce New Orleans Morgan Dollars were released which stimulated collector and the interested. The Silver Dollars went fast! To start with the Treasury held 180 million in 1960 and by 1964 they were down to 28 million. That is when the treasury stepped back and said "slow down" an audit was done to figure out exactly what they had. Nearly three million uncirculated Carson Million Silver Dollars were found and set aside.
Now how do you equally distribute all the Carson City Morgan Dollars? The commission recommended to President Nixon the idea of a mail order bid. Congress provided the funds to the GSA (General Services Administration). Posters were printed and taken to approximately 40,000 post offices and 60,000 banks in a huge advertising campaign. The Carson City Morgan Dollar was on display at coin shows, banks even took turns showcasing the actual Carson City Morgan Dollar. The advertising didn’t stop there short documentaries were made for TV.
In 1971 the GSA took the Carson City Morgan dollar from Washington D.C. to West Point NY. It took 7 heavily guarded semi trucks to transport all the silver. Once the Silver Dollars were safe at West Point the inspection, weighing, counting and packaging was about to begin. Each Silver Dollar was inspected by hand. At first the idea was to use a machine to inspect the coins which would speed up the process, but in the end decided against it due to the fact the machine might scratch the coins. So the daunting task of inspecting every single coin with white gloves began.
We just finished talking about The Pittman Act in an article I posted Analyzing the Pittman Act. Now that was not the only time silver dollars have been melted down! Silver Dollars were melted down each year beginning in the 1880's for all sorts of reasons perhaps they were mutilated or un-current. On December 18th 1942 approximately 50,000,000 silver dollars were melted for war time uses. I think of all those silver dollars melted gone forever, but from the melting of those came new silver dollars.
Here is a chart that shows all the Silver Dollars Melted 1888-1964:
On March 14th, 1900 the gold standard act was passed. The act stated that gold would be the only standard for redeeming paper money. This act also confirmed the nation's commitment to the gold standard by assigning gold a specific dollar value. Now gold would be the single monetary standard unit of value and would consist of 25.8 grains of gold nine-tenths fine.
Skip forward to 1904 when silver reserves were extremely low as was the demand for the Silver Dollar. By 1904 when the last amount of silver bullion purchased under the Sherman Act was depleted the coinage of the silver dollar ended. But the history of the Morgan Silver Dollar didn't just end right there and then it was brought back to life for just one more year in 1921. The Pittman act of 1918 directed that not more than 350,000,000 standard silver dollars would be converted into bullion and sold or used for subsidiary silver coinage. Wow! Think of all those silver dollars that would have been melted down.... A total of 270,232,722 silver dollars were melted and 259,121,554 of those melted dollars was sold to the United Kingdom at $1 per troy ounce. Why did we sell that much silver bullion to the United Kingdom? Because India didn't believe their banknotes issued by the British government would be redeemable during the world war which caused a run on the British supply of metal. The Pittman act which was introduced by Key Pittman of Nevada introduced the bill mainly as a relief effort for the British government.
Another aspect to the Pittman Act was the authorization of coinage replacement for every silver dollar melted. Thus why the 1921 Morgan Silver Dollar was minted for one final year ! One small problem all the coinage dies had been destroyed in 1910 so Morgan created an new master die for the dollar. The 1921 peace dollar was also minted on the same year to commemorate the resulting peace after the world war.
Everyone collects Morgan Silver Dollars for different reasons. Some want to collect every year or a certain mint; for instance they want every year the Morgan was minted in Philadelphia. We all have our personal reasons for collecting our own way.
When you go into a coin store or shop on line there is always low grade Morgan dollars selling for a reasonable price. Don't over look them... They have a history all to themselves. These coins were loved until their edges felt smooth. They have a worn look of a coin mingling with other coins in someones pocket, it feels old and smooth. The history of someone walking around in the 1800's with your exact coin in the pocket is pretty interesting!
You don't have to worry about touching it with your fingers or rubbing a smudge of dirt off with your finger. You can keep one in your pocket for good luck use it as a fill in coin until you find your specific 1885 Morgan Dollar you've been looking for your entire life.
They also make great gifts. What kid wouldn't want a silver dollar for Christmas actually what adult wouldn't want a silver dollar for Christmas!
We are all here because we love to collect Morgan Dollars. We all have our own personal reasons for being a fan of the Morgan Silver Dollar. And of course we all have our own personal way we like to collect our Morgan Silver Dollars.
Perhaps you collect only by the year and disregard where your Morgan was minted. In that case you're probably on your way to fulfilling your goal.
Another way you might collect Morgan Dollars is by year and where each coin was minted.
Maybe you just have a pile of Morgan Dollars and could care less when and where they were minted you just like to own them which is awesome!
There is no wrong way to collect Morgan Dollars. There are even collectors who might want this reverseMoney Clip Morgan Dollar. List price is $178.95, but today it's on sale for only $165.18! No two collectors are alike, but what we all enjoy is our Morgan Dollars!
Official Product Description:
This real U.S. coin is first layered in pure bright silver. Then, by hand, the figure is highlighted and brought to life with rich, pure 24K gold. This breathtaking and exclusive work turns the coin into a stunning and true work of art. Each coin is hermetically sealed against wear in a clear, hard acrylic coating. It is then mounted in a patented hinged clip and placed in a jewelry box.
It says Jewelers Eye Loupe, but it would make a great coin magnifying glass to keep in your pocket. It's small compact and priced extremely well! The list price is $13.50, but it's on sale for only $7.25 that is a 46% savings. Plus it ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping!
Since they are so affordable you can keep one in your car one in your kitchen drawer. You can get a few so you never have to go looking for a magnifying glass again!
The Official Product Description:
The complete set is great for rock collectors, coin collectors, hobbyists, jewelers and anyone else who requires distortion free magnification.
The set includes one 10x 21mm chrome loupe, one 30x 21mm chrome loupe and one 10x&20x dual loupe
The 10x power loupe has a focal distance of 1" (26mm) with 21mm dia lens size
The 30x power loupe has a focal distance of 1/2" (13mm) with 21mm dia lens size
The dual butterfly loupe has 10x power with 18mm lens size and 20x power with 12mm lens size
Made of optical glass and protected when not in use by the swing-out chrome plated metal cover
Each Morgan Silver Dollar needed about seven to ten blows from a working hub. It's interesting to note that the Peace Dollar (1921-1935) was done three to five times.
After every blow the die needed to be annealed. A lot of attention was given, but just the slight misalignment between blows would cause doubling of the die. They were extremely careful with the Morgan that is why you won't find too many double died. As with anything the first time something is done it might take a few tries like the 1878 P as they were being perfected you can find some imperfections in them.
Here is a list of some Double Die Morgan Silver Dollars
1901 P - Shifted eagle, doubled lower reverse
1900 O Doubled obverse stars
1900 P Doubled Eagle
1896 P Doubled obverse stars
1893 P Doubled obverse stars
1891 S Doubled obverse stars
1891 P Doubled ear
1889 O Doubled N in UNUM
1888 O Doubled head, doubled lower reverse
1887 O Doubled motto and stars in a radial direction
1887 P Double LIBERTY motto and stars
1878 S Doubled LIBERTY (four types), doubled motto (four types), doubled obverse
1878 CC Doubled obverse, doubled LIBERTY
In 1854 the San Francisco Mint opened to serve gold mines during the California gold Rush.
The California Gold rush started in 1848 when James W. Marshall found gold at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. During that time around 300,000 folks came to California in search of gold, and they weren't all from America people from as far as china, Australia, Europe and Latin America were making their way to California to strike it rich.
It didn't take long for the San Francisco Mint to outgrow their first building and need to move into a new one. In 1874 they did just that. This building was call "Old United States Mint" or "The Granite Lady". They built it with a concrete and granite foundation to ensure no one could tunnel into the vaults. This proved to be helpful during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake the Old United States Mint because it stayed standing. There was some $300 million in the vaults at the time a third of the United States' gold reserves. The Old United States Mint was open until 1937 when the present day San Francisco mint was opened. In 1961 the Old United States Mint was designated as a National Historic Landmark.
San Francisco Mint minted Morgan Silver Dollars from 1878-1904 + 192. You can tell if you have a San Francisco minted Morgan Dollar by looking at the reverse side of the Morgan Dollar. Directly about the D and the O you will the the letter S that stands for San Francisco Mint.
1883 Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 12,290,000
Proofs: 1,039
There is no mint mark on the coin which means it was minted in Philadelphia.
1883-CC Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 1,204,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in Carson City – CC
1883-S Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation Strikes: 6,250,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in San Francisco– S
1883-O Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 8,725,000
Proofs: 12
Minted in New Orleans– O
Random Fact of 1883
Liberty Head V nickel (1883-1913)Officially the US mint only minted the Liberty Head V nickel until 1912. There are 5 known genuine examples of the 1913 V Nickel that was produced illegally. They don't know how many were actually produced.Of course since there are only 5 in existence they are extremely valuable!
The original 1883 V Nickel didn't have the word "cents" on the reverse.
After 13 years of construction the Brooklyn Bridge is opened to traffic
U.Sand Canadian railroads institute 5 standard continental time zones, which ended the confusion for thousands of local times.
While construction was going on the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1883 they found a high concentration of nickel-copper at the Murray Mine on the edge of the Sudbury Basin which is near Ontario, Canda
Hong Kong Observatory is opened. The Observatory forecasts weather and issues warning on the weather-related hazard.
Most precious metals are weighed in troy ounces not in avoirdupois ounces. Understanding the difference between the two seems like a good place to start this post. If you went to the supermarket and weighed your fruit/vegetables you would be weighing in at avoirdupois ounces. There are 16 ounces in 1 lb and 1 ounce = 28.35 grams.
Now a troy ounce is typically heavier than an avoirdupois ounce. 1 troy ounce = 31.1 grams. But if you were to measure 1 troy pound to 1 avoirdupois pound a troy pound would be lighter because there are only 12 ounces in 1 lb troy pound.
To find out the Silver Value in a Morgan Silver Dollar you need to know two things:
1.What is the price of silver today?
For the purpose of this post let’s say silver spot price is $30.00 today
2. How many troy ounces in a Morgan silver dollar?
0.77345 troy ounces of silver in a Morgan silver dollar
(Price of Silver x how many grams of silver in a Morgan)
($30.00 x 0.77345) = $23.20
The Total Silver Value in a Morgan Silver Dollar would be would be $23.20
Another way you could come up with that number is if you knew the following:
How much does a Morgan Silver Dollar weigh in grams?
A Morgan Dollar weighs 26.73 grams
What is the price of Silver today?
For the purpose of this post let’s say silver spot price is $30.00 today
What is the conversion rate between ounces/grams?
Silver price is based in troy ounces so we need to convert ounces to grams which is .0321507466
What percentage silver is a Morgan silver dollar?
Silver = 90% and Copper = 10%
(Price of Silver x ounce/gram conversion x total weight of Morgan silver dollar/grams x 90% silver) = $23.20
($30.00 x .0321507466 x 26.73 x .90) = $23.20
The Total Silver Value in a Morgan Silver Dollar would be would be $23.20
Before you know it Christmas will be in full swing. What to buy? That is the question.... Some are easy like kids they want anything and everything. But as we get older our interests become more defined and usually more expensive. I myself wouldn't mind finding an 1895-O Morgan Dollar in my stocking, but that most likely won't happen. I would however be ecstatic to have anything from this list in my stocking! So if you know a coin enthusiast and are stumped as what to purchase read on! If I missed something on this list let me know!
This box stores 20 PCGS, newer ANACS and other slab sizes.
NGC slabs will fit in the box though the lid will not snap shut.
This exterior measures approximately 9" x 2.75" x 3.5" when closed
Coins and holders are NOT included.
Gold tone
Holds NGC slabs
Sturdy Plastic Construction
Bears the NGC logo
3. 2012 Guide Book of United States- Everyone should have one of these. If you buy it for someone and they already have that book no problem. Now they can have a copy at their computer and one to keep in the car. That way if they stop by the local coin shop their reference book will be in the car! And for only $10.17 why wouldn't you want to have a second copy!
The official description for the Guide book of United States Coins:
The Official Red Book A Guide Book of United States Coins is 65 years
young and going strong. Collectors around the country love the
convenience of the spiral bound edition. It opens up and lies flat on the
table while you study your coin collection. And of course it includes
all the historical background, detailed specifications, high-resolution
photographs, and accurate mintage data that turn a new coin collector
into an educated numismatist. How rare are your coins? How much are they
worth?
For $49.95 you can give your coin enthusiast a way to store and display their certified coins.
Great way to display coins in certified slabs by PCGS, NGC, ANACS, ICG, and others.
Styled with a sleek mahogany-colored wood grain finish.
Secure magnetic closure.
Lined with dark blue satin to make coins appear more vibrant when on display.
Includes three trays, each designed to hold 8 certified coins.
5. Collector NCG PCGS ICG Coin Slab Display Case Cabinet Holder Rack. If you know your coin enthusiast loves to always have their coins on display. Constantly having to pull everyone out to show you. Perhaps this display cast would be the ticket. Right now it's $52.95 on sale from $75.95 that is a 30% savings!
Handcrafted in solid furniture grade beech hardwood with elegant furniture finish.
Brass hardware and felt fabric background to create a stunning display.
A framed door keeps inquisitive fingers away, as well as dust
We back every sale since 1998 with our 60 days 100% customer satisfaction guarantee.
Don't pay more for less, buy from us for the quality and benefit from our low factory direct prices.
6. 100 2x2 Cardboard Coin Holders Large Dollars. I am talking about the large cardboard coin holder, but they are sold for half dollars, quarters, cents, nickels and dimes. This one is for 100 2x2 for the low price of $4.71!
Cardboard holders are the most common holders used for coin storage and display
They are made of high quality cardboard and offer great long term protection for your coins
Just fold them over the coin in the window and staple the holder around the outside
Each unit contains economy 100 holders
7. WorldEncyclopedia of Coins and Coin Collecting - I don't know if every coin collector loves to read like I do, but most probably do! You might end up collecting on particular coin, but all coins have an interesting history to read about.
A full color global guide to world coinage, from its origins in the 7th
century BC to the present day, featuring coins and collectables from up
to 200 countries.
8. Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Morgan and Peace Dollars is always a great book to own.That is if you know your coin collector loves Morgan and Peace Dollars. This book is for the serious silver dollar collector!With complete details of the history and specifics of the Morgan and Peace Dollar. This would make a wonderful gift!
These last two are for the kids or for the kid in us!
9. Coin Collecting for Kids - For only $10.87 this book is a great place to get kids started on coin collecting! Newly updated to include Presidential $1 coins
and Westward Journey nickels! A colorful, kid-friendly book to
introduce children to a lifelong hobby, Coin Collecting for Kids
encourages children to search for, save, and learn all about many
different U.S. coins. Take a tour through the mint and save pennies
from four different decades while learning about how coins are made.
Slots on every page let kids collect birth-year coins, millennium
coins, and twentieth-century coins. Lastly, a gatefold spread will
accommodate all 50 wildly popular statehood quarters. Organized by
release year, each slot lists the state's nickname, motto, flower, and
bird.
10. State Quarter Map - For only $13.49! US State Quarter Collection. Collecting quarters is a great way to introduce coin collecting. This quarter map has a unique design with slots for all the U.S. Territories and the District of Columbia, very educational!
I have another metal detecting video for you today. First find is an 1882 Morgan Dollar! Glad to see he didn't completely rub all the dirt off with his fingers. You will get so excited wrapped up in the moment of the find, but even in the excitement you can't rub the dirt into your coin.
I always think of these two rules when it comes to cleaning your finds
1. Never clean your coins.
2. Refer back to rule 1.
You have to remember dirt is like sandpaper between your finger and the coin. When you start rubbing that dirt off you will scratch the coin. I know it's hard to be patient, you might know you're holding a Morgan Dollar and really want to know the date and and where it was minted, but be patient. Don't be tempted to rub it with your fingers or your even your pants or shirt. Just pack that coin up and take it home.. Now if I are finding clad coins it doesn't really matter if you clean them now or at home.
1882 is indeed an exciting year to find. The first Morgan Silver Dollar was minted in 1878 so they had only been around for 5 years. I would love to know the history of this coin, who was it that owned this 1882 Silver Dollar before they lost it. I think that is one of my favorite parts of collecting coins whether it is finding them or purchasing them. Just feeling the history behind each coin.
Today I wanted to talk about a great book that every Morgan Dollar VAM enthusiast should look at. It's "The Top 100 Morgan Dollar Varieties: The VAM Keys". It's currently on it's 4th Edition and was originally published in 2009. This book goes into detail on the varieties as well as pricing and rarity information. If you're into VAMs, this is a great book to have.
Official description of The Top 100 Morgan Dollar Varieties: The VAM Keys:
This is the latest updated edition of a best selling selling book that created a revolution in collecting and investing in Morgan silver dollar varieties. The 4th edition contains new and fully illustrated Top 100 varieties, updated pricing, updated rarity information, certified populations and condition census data as well as a new chapter on rotated reverses. If you own silver dollars from 1878-1921, collect them, or are looking to acquire some of the rarest most desirable examples, this book is a must read. You should buy this book before you buy or sell another silver dollar!
Ever wonder what the MS63 or MS60 mean on a graded Morgan Dollar? William Herbert Sheldon thought of a grading system in 1948 for coins. He wanted to standardize coin grading by proposing what we now refer to as the Sheldon Scale.1 is a very poor coin you can barely tell that is a coin, and 70 is perfect!
The Sheldon Grading Scale
PO-1 (Poor) you can barely tell it’s a coin with it being damaged or worn, but you can tell the date and type of coin.
FR-2 (Fair) some details are visible, but for the most part extremely worn.
AG-3 (About Good) Worn out spots, but some lettering should be present and readable
G-4 (Good) over all the coin is still heavily warm, but some features and detail can be seen.
VG-8 (Very Good) Most of the legends are clearly readable, but the coin on a whole is still worn. The rim is full with clear features.
F-12 (Fine) The coin is moderately worn, but worn out evenly. All lettering is sharp.
VF-20 (Very Fine) all lettering full and sharp plus some definition of detail
EF-40 (Extra Fine) Slight but obvious wear on the high points, legends are sharp.
AU-50 (Almost Uncirculated) – There must be a little remaining mint luster as well as sharp legends and devices that show only traces of wear on the highest points.
The first part of the scale 1-59 would be circulated coins.
What does the MS stand for in coins?
The MS on a coin stands for Mint State. Uncirculated coins are MS60-MS70 on the Sheldon Grading Scale. The grade depends on the sharpness of the strike as well as the number of scratches, nicks, bag marks, etc. A majority of uncirculated Morgan’s will appear around grade M60. Only an extreme few will meet the grade for a M70 since M70 is perfect according to Sheldon’s definition there will be no blemishes at all. M70 also means a sharply struck coin with the die in good condition.
A bullion coin is usually purchased as an investment. A bullion coin will follow the market as the price of silver goes up so does the value of your bullion coin. And of course when the market goes down so does the value of your bullion coin. Popular bullion coins folks buy are the American silver eagle which is 99.90% silver bullion and the Canadian silver maple leaf which is 99.99.
As a side note you can also buy silver rounds which are sometimes referred to as generic silver rounds. These are usually 1 troy ounce and will have many different designs to choose from. You can even have them engraved to say Happy Birthday if you like. These are called rounds because the term "coin" is reserved for US mint issued "coins". Usually you will pay a slightly less premium for a silver round vs. a silver bullion coin.
What is a Numismatic Coin?
First off the definition of Numismatic is the study or collection of currency including coins, token, paper money and related objects. Numismatic not only applies to the person collecting, but also coin dealers and scholars really it's anyone interested in the study of coins.
Numismatic coins also see value in their metal content rise and fall with the market. The numismatic coin will also have value in the rarity of the coin as well as the condition of the coin. The Sheldon scale is a popular way to grade coins. Which started from a numismatist named William Herbert Sheldon who proposed the idea of the Sheldon scale. The Sheldon scale runs 0 - 70 with 0 being the poorest quality coin, but you can tell it's a coin, and 70 being perfect. The top three recognized grading services are PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service), ANACS (American Numismatic Association Certification Service), and NGC (Numismatic Guarantee Corporation)
Collecting coins is a long term passion, a life time passion and a personal decision. When you first decide you want to collect coins you might chose random coins to collect, but after awhile you will narrow your search to what interests you the most whether it's Morgan Dollars or Peace Dollars even Indian Head Pennies. Or you might want to collect all US coins; again it’s a personal choice. It doesn't matter what ever your passion is let it take you there. Dive in the history of your collection you will be rewarded.
1882 Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 11,100,000
Proofs: 1,100
There is no mint mark on the coin which means it was minted in Philadelphia.
1882-CC Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 1,113,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in Carson City – CC
1882-S Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation Strikes: 9,250,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in San Francisco– S
1882-O Silver Dollar
Mintage Circulation strikes: 6,090,000
Proofs: 0
Minted in New Orleans– O
Random Fact of 1882
Chester A. Arthur was the president of the United States (September 19th, 1881 - March 4th 1885)
Born in 1830 passed away in 1886 due to the rupture of a small artery within the brain.
As we near Christmas this is a good random fact; Edward H. Johnson, vice president of Thomas Edison Electric Light Company invented the first string of Christmas lights in 1882. The lights consisted of 80 hand blown, hand wired glass bulbs wrapped in red, white and blue crepe paper. The first electrically lighted Christmas tree was in the rear parlor of Thomas Edison associate Edward H. Johnson's home. However tree lights would not be sold commercially until the next century.
First world series game, Cincinnati beat Chicago 4-0
New York's Pearl Street Station was the first district lit by electricity
Coins minted in the year 1882
1882 Indian Head Cent
1882 Morgan Dollar
1882 Seated Liberty Dime
1882 Seated Liberty Half Dollar
1882 Shield Nickel
1882 Nickel Three Cent Proof
1884 Silver Dollar
1972-1974 GSA sold 3 million Morgan Carson City Dollars by mail order!
Finding the lowest grade Morgan Dollar!
We are all here because we love to collect Morgan Dollars. We all have our own personal reasons for being a fan of the Morgan Silver Dollar. And of course we all have our own personal way we like to collect our Morgan Silver Dollars. 
1883 Silver Dollar
collector would prefer this storage box for $16.99 
Ever wonder what the MS63 or MS60 mean on a graded Morgan Dollar? William Herbert Sheldon thought of a grading system in 1948 for coins. He wanted to standardize coin grading by proposing what we now refer to as the Sheldon Scale.1 is a very poor coin you can barely tell that is a coin, and 70 is perfect! 
