The Morgan silver dollar is the true Cinderella of the coin world. From an ignominious beginning grounded in blatant political favoritism, the Morgan silver dollar rose to become one of the most widely pursued and desirable of all US coins.

The year is 1873. Congress passes legislation, often referred to as the "Crime of '73", that eliminated the minting of several silver coins - the liberty seated dollar, the two cent piece, the two cent piece, the three cent silver piece, and the half dime. There were plenty of coins in circulation, and the general public did not miss them.

But the silver mining industry greatly missed these coins, and they lobbied Congress for the return of the silver dollar. The Comstock lode and other silver strikes out west caused an oversupply of silver, forcing prices downward and hurting the silver mining companies. In 1878, over the veto of then President Rutherford B. Hayes, Congress passed the Bland-Allison Act which required the Treasury to purchase between 2 million and 4 million troy ounces of silver each month (at market level prices) to be coined into silver dollars. This represented a colossal subsidy of the silver mining industry.

The US Mint struck the first business strikes of the Morgan silver dollar on March 12, 1878. The obverse features a left facing head of the Lady Liberty. The reverse features a bald eagle holding arrows and an olive branch. The designer's (George T. Morgan) monogram appears near the Lady Liberty's neck on the obverse. Mintmarks appear underneath the tail feathers of the bald eagle on the reverse between the D and the O in dollar. Five mints produced the Morgan silver dollars:

• Blank (Philadelphia)
• D (Denver)
• O (New Orleans)
• S (San Francisco)
• CC (Carson City).

These mints struck more than half a billion Morgan silver dollars from 1878 to 1904. Excess silver dollars began piling up. From 1904 to 1918, the supply of silver dollars was high, and there was a scarcity of silver bullion. In 1918, Congress passed the Pittman Act which called for over 270 million coins to be destroyed for the silver content. The law also required these coins to be replaced, but they were replaced with the Peace dollar which then became the standard issue. In 1921, the Morgan dollar made one last curtain call.

In the 1930's, the Treasury Department stimulated interest in the Morgan silver dollar by releasing uncirculated Morgan silver dollars from the Carson City mint. In the early 1960's, profiteers began redeeming silver certificates for Morgans at the Treasury due to rising silver prices, generating additional interest. From 1972 to 1980, the General Services Administration held mail order sales of the Carson City Morgan silver dollars, further stimulating interest in these magnificent coins.

The Morgan silver dollars offer many opportunities for the collector. Coins from the Carson City mint are very popular due to the relatively low mintages. There are several different varieties (or VAMs) and the most common are:

• 1878-P: 8 tail feathers
• 1879-CC: clear CC
• 1882-O over S
• 1887-O: 7 over 6
• 1888-O: doubled obverse ("Hot Lips")
• 1900-O over CC
• 1901-P: doubled reverse.

There are several different rarities sought by Morgan collectors:

• Any Carson City coin
• 1883-S uncirculated
• 1884-S uncirculated
• 1892-S
• 1893-S
• 1895-S
• 1885-O
• 1885-S
• 1896-S
• 1899-P
• 1901-P
• 1903-O
• 1903-S
• 1904-S.

The three date/mints that are the most valuable in the Morgan series are:

• 1889-CC
• 1893-S
• 1895 proof.

When grading Morgan silver dollars, the focus on the obverse is on the hairlines above the eye and ear, the edges of the cotton leaves, and the details in the high upper folds of her cap. Grading on the reverse focuses on the eagle's breast, the tops of the legs, and the talons.

For many collectors, there is also a nostalgic attachment to the Morgan silver dollars. Of all of the US coins, this one has the closest ties to the American wild west. When we hold a Morgan silver dollar, we remember John Wayne or Randolph Scott sidling up to the bar, demanding a drink and tossing down a Morgan silver dollar. We think of Wyatt Earp, Kit Carson, Wild Bill Hickok, Billy the Kid and the Cartwrights thundering across the Ponderosa. These wild west heroes exemplified the bold and daring entrepeneurial spirit of the American people, and that spirit has been captured in the Morgan silver dollar.

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