"Lady Liberty" design by George T. Morgan, 1878Morgan Silver dollars are among the most popular U.S. investment and collector coins in the world today. They were the product of the monetary turmoil of the last quarter of the 19th century. After an intense political battle between the populists favoring inflation and the monied interests favoring a strict gold standard, the Allison Bland Act called for the minting of between 2,000,000 and 4,000,000 silver dollars a month beginning in 1878.
All five U.S. mints - Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, Carson City, and New Orleans - produced Morgan silver dollars between 1878 and 1921, though not in every year. Each coin contains .77 ounces of pure silver. The silver is alloyed with copper for durability and to standardize the coins at .90 fine silver as required by law. Continue reading below...
“It is health that is real wealth, and not pieces of gold and silver.” - Mahatma Gandhi
Morgan dollars
were never popular for everyday circulation. They are too large and
heavy to carry comfortably. Silver certificates circulated in their
place as the paper was handier and readily converted to metal at any
bank. The great majority of Morgan dollars, therefore, never circulated
as working currency, and sat for years in canvas bags in the vaults of
the U.S. Treasury. This fact proved to be a boon to collectors later on
as the population of high quality coins is very large.
Silver coins were melted down at various times in history. A major conversion of silver dollars to bullion occurred between 1918 and 1921. Under the Pittman Act they were sold to China, which at the time was paying something like $1.30 for every coin. It was one of the rare moments in history where government turned a profit on something. Many millions more of the Morgan dollars were melted during the second world war.
When the United States suspended the coinage of silver in 1964, the Treasury sold off its enormous holding of silver dollars to the public. Anyone could walk into any Federal Reserve Bank in 1964 and swap paper silver certificates one for one for these beautiful silver coins. Collectors lined up by the thousands and hauled off bags full of Morgans.
The gold and silver bubble that peaked in 1980 put many more of these lovely gems in the melting pot, but many millions remain in the hands of collectors and investors. Most are in the same condition as when they left the mint.
The Morgan silver dollar offers an opportunity to own a beautiful piece of U.S. history, as well as historically solid protection against depreciating paper money.
Buy Silver:
- Morgan Silver Dollars
- Peace Silver Dollars
- Silver Eagle Dollars
- Early Dollars
- Seated Liberty Coins
- Trade Dollars
- Silver Coins & Bullion
- Spanish Milled Dollar
Speak Up:
Silver Gang:
Recent Posts
- Peace Silver Dollars
- Price Explosion
- Shock to the System
- Silver News 16 Oct 08
- Silver Today 13 Oct 08
- Grading Categories
- Coins Sold by U.S. Mint
- Trust The Metals
- Silver Mine Tour
- Markets Worldwide
- About Grading Coins
- About Certification
- Collecting Morgans
Essential Coin Books
Recommended Reading: Economy & Investing
- Conquer the Crash
- Elliott Wave Principle
- Bull Moves, Bear Markets
- Investing Rules
- Schiff's Crash Proof
- Gold, Peace, Prosperity
- Coming Collapse of $
- 40 Years A Speculator
- Economics in 1 Lesson
- Democracy: Painted Whore
- Creature Jekyll Island
Navigation
Blogroll
- Babies Rule! - Fun gifts for baby, mom, dad, grands!
- Build Your Own Store!
- Conservative gifts, t-shirts, bumper stickers
- Self-Defense-Outlet
