Morgans and Peace Dollars Enjoying Up Market

By Harry Miller, Coins Magazine June 06, 2011

This article was originally printed in Coins Magazine.
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The past month the coin market has been dominated by precious metals, especially silver with a near parabolic rise to just under $50 followed by a 30 percent correction. Much of this was speculation as the silver to gold ratio went from 40 to 1 down to 30 to 1. I suspect before this bull goes to slaughter we will again see this type of action.

The coin market is a smaller market. It is far less manipulated by speculators and wild rumors. Ironically, because it is smaller it is indicative of real value because it requires a lot of work to manipulate and big speculators are not interested in markets where they can’t invest multi-millions at a time.

2011 U.S. Coin Digest: Dollars Your best reference for the latest details and values for circulating and non-circulating dollars. Get your download today!

The greatest action has been in both Morgan and Peace dollars and the leader has been ironically the more common 1921 Morgan dollar. One West coast buyer purportedly has been trying to assemble 1 million coins. Now not to say the other Morgan dollars were lagging, but the 1921 is almost on par with the less common earlier dates.

Peace dollars have participated very strongly as well achieving prices nearly equal to their older sisters again somewhat contrary to actual relative scarcity. Mint state dollars of both series have soared after many years of near stagnant prices.

MS-62 and MS-63 dollars have virtually doubled in value and the MS-64 and MS-65 coins have added better than 60 percent to their price tags.

The real value today lies in those issues where a premium of 10-40 percent once existed and now they are at or near par with the more common issues. There is also extremely good value to be had in better date issues where they were once double or triple common-date mint state issues and now may be as little as a 30-50 percent premium.

One could also apply this same rationale to many of the mint state U.S. gold type coins, where one can find $20 Saint-Gaudens graded MS-62 at near 10 percent over bullion value. The real trick in this area of the market is to find the mintmarked or earlier dates at just a little more premium. These items will often represent a scarcity of 50 or 100 to 1 over the most common issues.

Indian Head gold $10 issues are good values as date and as type coins. When gold was one-third today’s price the Indian Head eagle was at a $100 premium to the Liberty Head variety and today that premium is much less in grades up to MS-62. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see extreme value here

Featured News

The 1895 Morgan Dollar: The 1895 Morgan Dollar is known as the “King of the Morgan Dollars” because it is the rarest and most valuable of the entire Morgan Dollar series. PF-68 specimens of this rare coin have sold for upwards of $120,000 at auction.

According to U.S. Mint records, there were 12,000 regular circulation Morgan Dollars struck for 1895, and 880 Proof specimens struck. However, only 75 to 80 of the 1895 Morgans have been accounted for, all of them Proofs. Where did 12,000 plus coins go?

 A Mysterious Disappearance?: Numismatic scholars are divided in their opinions as to why the 12,000 business strike specimens of the 1895 Morgan Silver Dollar have vanished into history. Most believe that the coins were never minted in the first place, and that this notation in the Mint accounting ledgers is in error. Some believe that the coins were minted, but melted down for various reasons. I even read one theory that proposes the coins were lost at sea in a shipwreck.

Why is it Called the “Morgan” Dollar when it Depicts Lady Liberty?: Actually, the Morgan Dollar (so-called because it was designed by George T. Morgan) has been called much worse. When it first came out, it was an unpopular coin frequently derided as the “Buzzard Dollar” because of the shape of the eagle’s head and the eagle’s generally scrawny appearance. Another popular term for the Morgan was “Cartwheels.” The proper term for the coin type is the “Liberty Head” dollar.

Millions and Millions of Morgans!: Although the Morgan Dollar wasn’t very popular when it first came out, we know today that it is one of the most popular coin types in the entire U.S. coinage series. Why did this change?

The answer is, millions and millions of Morgans! More than half a billion Morgan Dollars were made between 1878 and 1904, largely because of a law called the Bland-Allison Act, passed by Congress in February of 1878, which mandated that the Treasury must buy 2 to 4 million troy ounces of silver per month!

The “Silver Dick” Lobby: The Treasury was forced to buy this incredible amount of silver, which was flowing out of the Comstock Lode in Nevada, because of a group of silver mine owners who had formed a lobbying group. Led by Congressman Richard “Silver Dick” Bland, the silver lobby was able to pass legislation that made the U.S. Treasury its biggest customer.

Of course, the Treasury had to do something with all this silver, so it had the Mint produce the Liberty Head, aka Morgan, Silver Dollars.

Morgan Dollars are Called the “Buzzard Dollars”: The Morgan Dollar wasn’t very popular. The eagle was considered ugly, and the coin was derisively called a “cartwheel” for its large size and weight, so the Morgan Dollars sat in government vaults for many years, languishing in obscurity. Hundreds of millions of them were melted down again through the years, and many, such as the 12,000 made in 1895, are unaccounted for. But there were still plenty of Morgans to go around, since they only circulated in a few small areas.

The Silver Certificate Secret: Sometime around 1960, certain coin dealers became aware that the Treasury was giving out Morgan Dollars that were more than 80 years old, on a dollar for dollar basis, in exchange for silver certificates. Many of the dealers were just after the silver bullion at lower-than-market cost, but others realized the potential collector value of these 60 to 80 year-old mint state silver dollars. Tens of millions of Morgans were bought at face value until 1964 when the Treasury shut this practice down.

The Public Finally Wakes up to the Beauty of the Morgan Dollar: The Treasury had about 2.9 million Morgans left in 1964, mostly scarce Carson City specimens, which the GSA put up for public sale via mail-bid auctions starting in 1972. By 1980, as the supplies dwindled, the public finally became interested in the beautiful Morgan Dollar. The real feeding frenzy came, however, when an amazing hoard of more than 400,000 Morgans was found in the basement of Nevada miser LaVere Redfield after his death in 1975.

Morgan Mania at Last: The Redfield find got a lot of publicity, and as the U.S. population had become a lot more familiar with the value of its silver coins in the years following the change from the silver coinage to the clad coinage, the Morgan Dollar finally came into its own as a popular collectible series. The publication of the “Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Peace and Morgan Silver Dollars” by Leroy Van Allen and George Mallis, (the VAM book) also spurred significant collector interest in Morgans.

Wham VAM, Thank You Ma’am: The VAM book, so named for the initials of its authors, really boosted the values of Morgan Dollars into the big time. This book lists all of the known die varieties of the Morgan Dollar series, and got collectors to examine their coins more closely for detail. Coins that were previously valued based on a given year’s known mintage of X number of specimens, now had sub-categories of specimens for that year based on die varieties. These sub-categories were naturally more scarce than just any coin from that year, so collectors who might previously have been satisfied with one specimen from each year and mint, now had to have several from each to complete the “set.”

The Holy Grail of the Morgan Dollar Series:

For the rarest Morgan Dollar year/mint variety of them all, the 1895-plain, there are no business strike specimens known to exist. And even though 880 Proof specimens were struck according to Mint records, there are various estimates as to how many remain, ranging from 75 to 80, to upwards of 500! Some of the Proof specimens have been circulated, usually by accident because the Mint didn’t always package them so nicely as they do today, but no business strike example of the 1895 Morgan Silver Dollar has ever been found.

Is it out there? Possibly. If so, if it ever comes to light, it will be one of the most spectacular finds ever in American numismatics!

Come discuss Morgan Dollars with us in the Coin-Collectors Forum.

Special thanks to WackyWolf, a Forum member who offered corrections for this article.

CC Morgan Dollars

By thenevadamint

Morgan Coins & CC Morgans Investments

Morgan coins, morgan silver dollars, and cc morgans, despite all odds, have become a very popular and very solid investment you may want to consider – appreciating an average of 7 to 15% annual appreciation rate or more!

Morgan Coins – a Quick History

The first cc morgan coin was minted in Carson City in 1878 following the passage of the Bland-Alison Act requiring the US Treasury buy million of ounces of silver per month due to the mass amounts of silver coming out of the great Comstock Lode. Of course the Treasure had to so something with all this silver so it went on to strike over a half billion morgan coins, cc morgans, liberty heads and morgan silver dollars between 1878 and 1904 – with a last run in 1921.

Making $$$ with Morgan Coins & CC Morgans

When the cc morgan silver dollar first came out it was nick-named the “Buzzard Dollar” because the eagle looked grainy and it wasn’t very popular. So over the years millions upon millions of cc morgans were melted down – leaving limited quanities – and making for the perfect coin investment opportunity.

One coin analyst predicts the cc morgan silver dollars poised to increase the most in value in the next few years are the 1895 cc morgan, 1892-cc morgan, 1894 morgan coin, 1878-CC, and the 1883-CC. And if history is any indication, you can expect these rare cc morgan coins (especially the very popular carson city coins) to appreciate an average of 7 to 15% per year or more!

These five morgan coins have demonstrated over the years the strongest gains over a long period of time. And it is for this reason that you can expect these same coins to show a similar increase in value in the future IF you invest in MS-65 uncirculated quality or better.

Invest Only in High Grade CC Morgan Coins

Invest only what you can afford, but make it a point to only invest in the highest grade cc coins specimens. If you can afford to buy proof morgans, you should, because those have performed exceptionally well over the last fifteen years. The next best investments are the very high uncirculated MS-65 or better. Of course these high grade morgan dollars are pricey compared to MS-60 to MS-63, but their rarity virtually guarantees to make them a very good, high ROI investment.

Buy CC Morgans from a Reputable Source

Before you rush off to invest your hard-earned money in a MS-65 cc morgan, keep in mind not all dealers use the same grading standards and it is very much a “buy beware” situation. Only purchase cc coins that have been graded by a top-tier grading and that come in a top-tier grading service holder. Avoid all third-tier services like the plague.

• Top Tier – PCGS and NGC
• Second Tier – ANACS and ICG
• Third Tier – All others, including ACG, INB, NTC, PCI, SEGS, SGS, etc.

Bottom line: Morgan coins and cc coins which are in PCGS and NGC slabs or holder are worth much more than coins in slabs from any of the other minor grading services, because PCGS and NGC have consistent, exacting, and largely non-subjective standards for grading.

Buy CC Morgan Coins on eBay

So what are you waiting for? Venture on over to eBay and find yourself a cc morgan silver dollar treasure today because we’re talking money in the bank!

In 1873, the then-current American dollar coin was legislated out of existence. No one seemed to mourn its passing.

When a new silver dollar arrived on the scene in 1878, no one seemed to welcome its return. There simply was not much clamoring among the American public for a heavy, nearly palm-sized dollar coin. But the Morgan Dollar was never a people’s coin.

The impetus for the Morgan Dollar came from America’s richest silver strike, the great Comstock lode in northern Nevada. The vein of silver was so thick and so rich that a million dollars of silver a week was coming from the Comstock mines. There had to be a market for this river of silver or the bustling Nevada economy would collapse. The Federal government was the obvious customer for all this silver and lobbyists successfully shepherded the new silver dollar into existence with the passage of the Bland-Allsion Act in 1878. Passed over the veto of President Rutherford B. Hayes, Bland-Allison required the United States Treasury to purchase between $2 and $4 million worth of silver bullion per month and coin it into silver dollars.

The new silver dollar was designed by George T. Morgan. The 31-year old Morgan was brought from his native England to serve as “Special Engraver” for the director of the Philadelphia Mint, Henry R. Linderman, in 1876. Ordinarily, coin design was left to the Chief Engraver, then William Barber. A sham competition between the two men was staged and, as the protege of the Director of the Mint, Morgan’s design was chosen. On the front of the coin Morgan created a head of Lady Liberty, based on his Philadelphia schoolteacher-model Anna Willess Williams, and graced the back with a rather underfed eagle.

Ironically, Linderman left the Mint later that year to look after his failing health, Barber’s son Charles succeeded him to Chief Engraver and Morgan was demoted to Assistant Engraver. He would remain in that position, his career stalled, for over 40 years. When he finally ascended to Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, George T. Morgan was over 70 years old. The Morgan Dollar was the only American coin he ever designed.

The first Morgan Dollars were struck on March 11, 1878, less than two weeks after the coin was authorized by Congress, at 3:17 in the afternoon on Press #4 in Philadelphia. It is currently is on display at the Hayes Library and Museaum in Fremont, Ohio. It had a metallic content of 90% silver and 10% copper. While most of the Morgan Dollars were minted in Philadelphia, a small mint was established in Carson City, Nevada to also press the coins near the source of the Comstock lode. The mine, however, played out shortly thereafter and the Carson City mint closed forever in 1893. The Morgan Dollars minted in Carson City are rare and highly collectible today.

More than 500 million Morgan Dollars were minted until production stopped in 1904, after the statutary 25-year run for a coin design. The silver dollars were never really popular – most were circulated in the sparsely populated West – and huge stockpiles were on hand. In 1918, more than 270 million Morgan Dollars were melted down to provide war-time silver for Great Britain. In 1921 another 86 million Morgan Dollars were coined but production was halted in 1922 for the commemorative Peace Dollar to mark the end of World War I. The design was so popular it became the regular silver dollar and no more Morgan Dollars were ver minted.

In death, as in life, the Morgan Dollar was ignored by the public. The silver dollar was not a collector favorite, either, as the smaller denominations were easier to afford. Millions more were melted down for their silver content, especially when silver prices rose. Finally, in 1972, the General Services Administration auctioned off a lot of 2.9 million scarce Carson City Morgan Dollars it had squirrelled in its vaults. Suddenly the Morgan Dollar was hot among collectors.

And then LaVere Redfield died. Redfield was a stock and real estate investor who made millions in Reno, Nevada. Redfield distrusted paper money and didn’t have much confidence in banks, either. When possible, he tried to convert his cash into “hard money.” He set his eye on the Morgan Dollar with its 90% silver content. Silver dollars were readily available at banks throughout the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s and Redfield bought them whenever he could. As he bought them, he put the silver dollars in bags and stored them in his basement. He was not a coin collector and didn’t take much notice of the bags as he piled them under his house. He would eventually wind up with 400 bags filled with about 1,000 silver dollars each.

Redfield died in 1974 and while doing an appraisal of his estate, the Internal Revenue Service uncovered the stash of silver dollar-stuffed bags. The story goes that Redfield placed a note of the treasure asking the discover not to alert the IRS of the hoard. The total of 411,000 silver dollars – weighing 11 tons – were put for auction and fetched $7.3 million, the largest documented numismatic transaction in history.

Now the Morgan Dollar had genuine star status in the coin world. The dealers who purchased the Redfield hoard gradually dispersed the silver dollars into the collecting community, further stimulating interest in the coin. Today, the Morgan Dollar, ignored in circulation, is one of the most famous and desired American coins in existence.

Morgan Silver Dollar

The Morgan Silver dollar is a popular commodity among collectors. Many find coin collecting to be an enjoyable pastime and also provides the collector with increases in monetary value. Coins are collected both for their nostalgic and historical properties, as well as for investing reasons. The Morgan Silver dollar is rich in a history that can be likened to that of Cinderella, by way of a rags to riches tale. In order to fully understand the value of these coins, people must understand the history surrounding them.

George T. Morgan is credited with the design of the Morgan Silver dollar. He developed the obverse and reverse sides on coinage, this being the separate images that appear on both sides. On the obverse side of the coin is a portrait of ‘Lady Liberty’. In fact, as the story goes, a woman by the name of Anna Williams sat for her portrait to be taken, and later gained national acclaim as ‘Miss Liberty’. Near Lady Liberty’s neck, Morgan’s monogram can be seen. The reverse side of the coin bears the likeness of eagle which is grasping olive branches and arrows in each of its feet. Olive branches denote peace, arrows war, and both combined signified a new era for the United States, one that symbolized a time and peace and military prowess.

The Morgan Silver dollars have a precious metal content which roughly comes to 24 grams of the metal per coin. They were minted from 1878 to 1904, and then again for one year, 1921. The coins were not popular when they were first created, in fact, much criticism existed as people thought that the head of the eagle looked rather scraggly and in fact, looked like that of a buzzard, hence bestowing upon the coin the nickname of ‘Buzzard Dollar’. The dollars were not authorized until the year 1878 with the passing of the Bland-Allison Act. This law required that two to upwards of four million ounces of silver be bought by the United States Treasury every month. The Treasury became the biggest buyer of the coinage, however, this also led to the coin’s unpopularity as the act resulted in the production of half a million Morgan Dollars.

The metal dollars were commonly used in daily commerce both nationwide and around the world and in some cases became known as the Liberty Head dollar. A shortage of silver in 1904 brought about the end of production for the coins. Over two hundred million Morgan dollars were melted down into bars. This and subsequent melting contributed to the rarity of Morgan Silver dollars minted in certain years causing the collection appeal and value of the remaining dollars to increase exponentially. A small number of the dollars, seventeen percent to be exact, remained intact. The preservation of this seventeen percent is due to the passing of the Pittman Act in 1918. This law set up the prevention of melting coins down to bullion exceeding three million, and in fact due to this law almost that many silver dollars were, in fact, re-minted.

The value in Morgan Silver dollar prices are dependent on not only the quality of the coinage, but also on where the individual coins were minted. By looking at the reverse side, the one with the eagle, mint markers can be seen in between the D and O in the word dollar. A single letter denotes where the coin was minted, and if no letters can be seen, the coin was minted in Philadelphia. The most valuable and highest Morgan Silver dollar prices reside with those minted in Carson City, Nevada. This is due to the fact they are of low mintage. This was due to an error in production. Twelve thousand were scheduled to be minted and a mere 800 were actually recorded. This led to much speculation as to what happened to the missing twelve thousand, some even believed a romanticized notion that the coins had been lost at sea.

Morgan Silver dollar prices both rose and gained in public interest when over four hundred thousand dollars worth of the coins were found in the basement of the home of LaVere Redfield. This discovery enticed many collectors who vied over possession of the coins and eventually led to an auction, with the winner posting a bid of over seven million. Value by way of prices continue to rise as they are collected worldwide and valuable due to the precious metal content and beauty in design. Many investors believe there is a level of security in the investing of coins during times of economic unrest, and precious metals are an excellent investment due to a continual demand and short supply. One of the main characteristics of the Morgan Silver dollar, despite containing the precious metal, are the fine detailing of the images that appear on both sides of the coins. The most valuable of the coins have almost a mirror like affect on both the obverse and reverse. Standard Morgan Silver dollar prices are around thirteen dollars per coin, however, different coins have different values. For example, one minted in 1887 in San Francisco can easily sell on the current market for around one hundred dollars, while a silver dollar minted in 1885 from Carson City can sell for over five hundred.

The shimmer of precious metals and the nostalgic pastime of collecting can be enough to lure people into the appeal found in Morgan Silver dollar prices. However, one should be careful to prevent becoming caught up in earthly riches, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth… but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven… for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6: 19, 20-21). Wise collectors can both appreciate the value in the collectible and appreciate what can be represented by way of history as every coin tells a story.

For more information: http://www.christianet.com/bullion

GSA Carson City Silver Dollars: A History as Tumultuous as That of the Morgan Silver Dollar Itself

March, 1964. Day after day, long lines of anxious coin buyers form outside the Federal Reserve Building in Washington, D.C. Each is hoping that his $1,000 purchase of an unopened bag of 1,000 U.S. Silver Dollars will result in what amounts to a modern day treasure trove worth many thousands of dollars.

 

The outpouring of silver dollars from the U.S. Treasury continues at a staggering pace until it is finally brought to a halt on March 26, 1964. On that day, the Secretary of the Treasury, C. Douglas Dillon, suspends the exchange of silver dollars for silver certificates. Americans can no longer use their greenbacks for the one-to-one purchase of silver dollars from the Treasury!

 

What had brought us to this important event in the history of the U.S. Silver Dollar?

 

From its beginning, the U.S. Silver Dollar was the focus of fierce battles between politicians representing western silver mining interests and those promoting gold as our monetary standard. Throughout its checkered history massive production of the coins was interspersed with the melting of millions of pieces to finance war efforts or for international silver sales to our allies. For its part, the general public had little interest in using the coin in daily commerce due to its size and weight. In fact, after their mintage, most silver dollars were simply bagged and shipped to Washington for storage. At times, the stock of silver dollars sitting in Treasury vaults reached into the hundreds of millions.

 

Despite a decided lack of interest in the coins on the part of the general public, there were those who enjoyed collecting silver dollars. The coins were also popular as Christmas gifts and were therefore often released in bag quantities to banks around the country in the months leading up to the holiday. It was the result of one of these pre-Christmas releases that the history of the Morgan Dollar was changed forever.

 

During the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, most mint state Morgan Silver Dollars traded among collectors for a small premium over face value. However, there were a few rare dates thought to have been mostly lost in the silver melts of previous decades and these traded at prices of several hundred dollars or more. One date, the 1903-O, was considered to be a major rarity and if one was lucky enough to ever have an opportunity to buy one, he could expect to pay a whooping $1500 for a mint state example! Most major coin dealers of the day had never even seen a mint state example of this date much less had the opportunity to own or handle one.

 

In November of 1962, the U.S. rare coin market was rocked by almost unbelievable news. Several dates previously considered exceedingly rare were discovered in bag quantities during the annual pre-Christmas release by the Treasury. Among those dates was the much-desired 1903-O! Obviously, after the release of this key date in bag quantities, its lofty price adjusted quickly to the new market realities. However, the die was cast.

 

Overall interest in Morgan Dollars skyrocketed, and with the publication of the news that important rare date coins were being released from the Treasury vaults, the rush was on. Now, after putting a stop to the unprecedented run on the Treasury’s holdings, auditors would soon discover that the remaining stock consisted of only about 3,000 bags of uncirculated coins, mostly from the Carson City Mint.

 

While the rare coin market digested the many thousands of bags of newly-released silver dollars, the politicians set about trying to decide how to liquidate the remaining Treasury holdings of nearly 3 million silver dollars. Almost every idea imaginable was discussed including the melting of the coins for sale as bullion! Fortunately, this outrageous idea was scrapped. After many years of debate, it was decided to sell the coins to the general public through a series of mail-bid sales to be conducted by the General Services Administration, or GSA. It was believed that this would be a fair and equitable manner in which to distribute the coins to U.S. citizens.

 

President Richard M. Nixon signed a bill on December 31, 1970 authorizing the sale of the Treasury’s holdings of silver dollars and on December 6, 1971, official custody of the coins was finally transferred to the U.S. Bullion Depository at West Point, NY where the GSA accepted trusteeship. After nearly a year of counting, sorting, and packaging of the coins by the GSA staff, the details of the first mail-bid sale were finally released on October 31, 1972.

 

A series of five sales of the Carson City Silver Dollars were held with the final sale closing on June 30, 1974. Despite a massive advertising campaign on the part of the GSA, the silver dollar sales were definitely met with lukewarm interest and poor results. Anticipating much greater demand than actually realized, the GSA had stipulated that each customer could purchase only one example of each date represented in the sale. While dates such as the 1879-CC, 1890-CC, and 1891-CC quickly sold out, most others went begging.

 

When the dust finally settled on that last sale of 1974, nearly one million of the Carson City silver dollars remained unsold!

 

As one might expect with a governmental promotion the size of the GSA sale, critics were numerous and quite outspoken. Many coin dealers were angered with the notion that the U.S. government was “now in the coin business”. Some complained that the coins were being promoted to buyers with limited numismatic experience and that with the minimum bid prices offered by the GSA, most buyers would be ‘buried’ in the coins. One prominent New York City coin dealer even petitioned the Securities & Exchange Commission to investigate claims in GSA sales literature that the coins represented ‘a sound investment’. At that time, coin dealers were discouraged from using such claims in their promotional literature.

 

The issue of the remaining coins lay dormant for a number of years until it was again brought before the U.S. Congress in early 1977. Finally, in March of 1979, legislation was signed into law by President Jimmy Carter authorizing the GSA to sell the remaining Carson City silver dollars still in its possession.

 

In July of 1979, the GSA announced preliminary plans to offer the nearly one million remaining Carson City silver dollars in another round of mail-bid sales set to begin in early 1980. Along with this announcement, the GSA commented that over 25,000 requests for information had already been received from interested parties. A September press release noted that interest was running extremely high with over 130,000 post card requests from collectors to be added to the GSA mailing list.

 

All indications were that interest in the upcoming mail-bid sale would be unlike that of any other to date. Remember the sales of the 1970’s? Only 1 coin per date per customer had been allowed. How would the GSA allocate coins in this sale? Amazingly, despite the indications of strong bidder interest, the GSA set the minimum number of coins per bidder at 500!

 

During November of 1979, the GSA released formal sales literature and even included pre-sale minimum bid prices for the upcoming sale. For those of us who remember late 1979 and its relevance to the rare coin market, this period was represented by extreme price volatility in the silver market. Was it wise for the GSA to be publishing pre-sale minimum bid pricing so far in advance of the actual sale? Well, one can guess the outcome.

 

On January 2, slightly more than a month before the announced sale date of February 8, 1980, GSA Commissioner Ray Markon was forced to retract those pre-announced bid prices “due to volatility in the silver market”. Buyers were instead instructed to call a toll-free number that would be activated once the bid process opened in order to get an up-to-the-minute minimum bid price for the coins being offered. However, the damage had been done. Many bidders, using order forms with previously-published incorrect minimum bid prices, would later underbid on dates of their choice.

 

As if changing the published minimum bid price weren’t maddening enough, the GSA had yet another surprise in its bag of tricks. On February 21, thirteen days after the commencement of the bidding process, the GSA announced that it was going to change the minimum number of coins allowed per bidder. Due to unexpected demand, and in order to allow for a more equitable distribution of the remaining silver dollars, only 35 coins per customer, not 500 per customer as originally advertised, would be allotted to each bidder.

 

Many bidders ended up with no coins at all and I’ve often wondered if those who mailed their bids in early with a requested minimum greater than 35 coins were not excluded altogether. Reaction was swift, and predictable. Complaints poured into local and national newspapers, industry-related magazines and periodicals, and most importantly, into the U.S. Congress. Even before the final sale in July of 1980 disposed of the remaining Carson City silver dollars in the GSA’s possession, hearings before the U.S. Congress were already being planned in Washington. While the sales of the 1970’s were marked by a decided lack of interest on the part of the buying public, the GSA sales of 1980 can only be described as chaotic.

 

 

THE GREAT GSA CRACK-OUT

 

As quickly as the first GSA CC dollars were mailed to winning bidders, they began to appear at coins shows around the country. And if history does indeed repeat itself, then the GSA CC dollars were due for much more tumult.

 

I’ve asked numerous dealers about their experiences with GSA CC dollars in the years immediately following their release for public bidding. Many commented that they believed the coins, housed in their original GSA holders and boxes, were simply too bulky to transport to shows or to store easily at their shops. They preferred to carry their inventory in double-row boxes, each coin housed in a flexible plastic “flip” or in plastic tubes each holding twenty coins. And besides, so many of the coins were entering the marketplace that they carried no noticeable premium in their original GSA holders.

 

It was often said that the sound of the coins being “whacked out” of their GSA holders could be heard across the bourse floor at major shows as dealers prepared to pack their inventory. One dealer told me of seeing trash bins filled with discarded GSA cases at the end of major shows.

 

However, in my opinion, no single event since their release has had a greater impact on the population of GSA coins in their original holders than the introduction of third party grading and encapsulation.

 

When PCGS and NGC introduced their grading services during the mid 1980’s, the rare coin marketplace changed dramatically. Dealers and collectors alike quickly accepted the innovative ideas of the two companies. But, in order to receive their grade and other company-offered guarantees, both companies required that a coin be encapsulated in their tamper-resistant plastic holders. As if that weren’t bad enough news for GSA CC dollars, other, more subtle factors combined to put additional pressure on the remaining population of GSA coins.

 

Soon after PCGS introduced its encapsulation service, some dealers believed that CC dollars were being ‘rewarded’ with a grade that was as much as a full point higher than coins from other mints in comparable physical condition. Whether this was true or not, for many dealers it was worth the risk of cracking out every GSA CC dollar that had a ‘shot’ at a higher grade. And crack them out they did!

 

For its part, NGC gained a reputation as favoring beautifully toned coins. Again, the result was the same. Many beautifully toned GSA CC dollars are now lost forever to the GSA collector.

 

But all GSA news is not bad news. GSA CC dollars have recently gained remarkably in popularity and many dealers have begun to realize that the coins are often worth more in the original holder. I believe that the pace of GSA crack-outs has definitely subsided.

 

And there’s more good news. At this year’s FUN Show, NGC unveiled its new grading service for GSA CC dollars. The new service seems to be gaining in popularity, but only time will tell if it will ultimately become a marketing success. If nothing else, perhaps it will extend the life of a few more GSA CC dollars…
at least for a while.

 

 

Copyright 1993, Bryan Sonnier
bsonnier@mindspring.com

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