One of the best loved and most collected American coins, the Morgan Silver Dollar has a fascinating history.

The Comstock Load from Virginia City, Nevada, was first made public in 1859.  It produced more than $400 million dollars worth of silver and gold, and drove the price of silver way down.

So much so that in 1878, the Bland-Allison Act required the U.S. Treasury to purchase $2 to $4 million worth of silver bullion each month to convert into coins.

The Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint, George T. Morgan, designed what is now known as the Morgan Silver Dollar.   The elegance and timelessness of the design has made it one of the most popular American coins.  And today, Morgan Silver Dollars run the gamut from affordable to extremely valuable.

In 1890, the Hayes Administration passed the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890, which set the monthly commitment at $4.5 million.  Treasury Bills that could be redeemed for either gold or silver were used for the purchase.

So many bond holders redeemed their notes for gold that the Treasury’s reserves were seriously depleted, and financial panic ensued.  In 1893, the Sherman Act was repealed and production of silver dollars slowed dramatically.

Once the bullion supply for silver dollars basically ran out in 1904, minting of silver dollars ceased.

The Pittman Act of 1918 required the government to convert silver dollars into bullion and then create an equal number of new coins from the bullion.  More than 270 million silver dollars were melted down.

To comply with the Pittman Act, production of the Morgan Silver Dollar resumed in 1921 for a brief period of time.  You’d think that would be the end of the story, but it’s not.

The Silver Act of 1942 resulted in the melting down of even more Morgan Silver Dollars.  In fact, it’s estimated that more than 80% of the Morgan Silver Dollars that were produced are no longer in existence.  That’s why even coins with an original issue of over one million can still be valuable.

In 1962, with a surplus of silver dollars on their hands, the U.S. government began selling original Treasury bags containing 1,000 silver dollars for face value.   News stories about rare coins being included in the bags reignited interest in collecting Morgan Silver Dollars.

But when lots of the formerly rare uncirculated 1903-O coins were released, their value went from $500 to $35 in a matter of months.

During the early 1970s, the General Services Administration packaged and sold off most of the remaining government-owned Morgans, many of which were minted in Carson City.  Morgan Silver Dollars in the original GSA packaging are very collectible.

Probably the most valuable Morgan Silver Dollar is the 1893 proof minted in San Francisco, which is worth more than $1 million.  The 1893-O proof is worth more than $300,000.  The 1895-O and 1896-O MS-67s are worth around half a million.Other sought-after coins include anything minted in Carson City, especially 1889 – which is worth about $500,000 – and the 1892, 1895, 1903, and 1904 coins from San Francisco.

Read more about Peace silver dollars here.

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Minted between 1921 and 1928, and again between 1934 and 1935, the Peace Dollar was the last silver dollar minted in the United States.

The Pittman Act of 1918 required that up to 350 million silver dollars be converted into bullion and that for each coin that was converted, a new one had to be minted.  More than 270 million silver dollars — nearly have of all that were ever struck — were melted down.  Paving the way for an equal number of new coins.

The popular Morgan Silver Dollar hadn’t been minted since 1904.  But to comply with the Pittman Act, 86 million Morgan Silver Dollars were produced in 1921.  But a movement was afoot to design a coin that would commemorate the end of World War I.

As the Mint’s chief engraver, George T. Morgan — the designer of the Morgan Silver Dollar — was the likely choice to design the new coin.  But President Warren G. Harding ordered than an open competition be held sponsored by the Commission of Fine Arts.

Nine artists entered the competition, including the designers of the Lincoln Penny, the Mercury Dime, and the Standing Liberty Quarter.  The design of an Italian immigrant named Anthony de Francisci carried the day.  Francisci’s wife was the model for Lady Liberty and his initials are visible under her neck.  Also an immigrant from Italy, she considered modeling for the coin the culmination of a lifelong dream.

The Peace Dollar is so named because the word “peace” appears at the base of the rock on which the eagle is perched.  Morgan did have a hand in the design.  He replaced the broken sword in the eagle’s beak with a more pacifist olive branch.

The first Peace Dollars were minted on December 26, 1921, but there were problems with the design.  The relief of the coin was so high that the dies used to produce it were breaking at record pace.  And the coins didn’t stack well.   The next year, the design was modified to lower the relief.

In 1928, the number of new silver dollars produced finally equaled the number melted down in compliance with the Pittman Act, and production stopped.   To back up existing silver certificates — paper dollars that could be redeemed for silver — some additional Peace Silver Dollars were minted between 1934 and 1935.

In May of 1964, 316,000 Peace Silver Dollars were struck in Denver.  But by order of Congress, all those coins were melted down.  There are rumors that there are still some in existence, but owning them is illegal.

Several Peace Dollars are valuable.  Extra-fine 1921, 1928-P, and 1934-S Peace Dollars are worth a bundle.   And extra-fine 1925 and 1928-S are also valuable.

Read more about the history of U.S. silver dollars here.

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