Morgan silver dollars are one of the most popular series of United States coins. Their big, heavy and beautiful design make them attractive to coin collectors around the world. However, it wasn't always that way. It wasn't until the mid-1970s that Morgan silver dollars became extremely popular with coin collectors.

There are special coin clubs that are dedicated to collecting Morgan silver dollars. Morgan dollar specialist from around the world usually meet at every major coin show to discuss new finds and attend educational presentations. The all-inclusive book titled The Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Morgan and Peace Dollars by Leroy C. Van Allen and A. George Mallis started a new coin collecting craze by encouraging collectors to assemble sets of different varieties of Morgan silver dollars.

1:37 Watch Now: 5 Surprising Facts About the Morgan Dollar

History of the Morgan Silver Dollar

In February 1878, the Bland-Allison Act became law and mandated that the government purchase several million dollars worth of silver every month and coin them into silver dollars. These coins were not needed for commerce but were used to artificially stabilize the price of silver at the request of the silver mining interests in the Western United States.

George T. Morgan was the English engraver that designed the obverse and the reverse of the coin. The United States Mint in Philadelphia struck the first Morgan silver dollars in 1878. Over the life of the coin series, the mint produced it at five different mints: Philadelphia (no mint mark). New Orleans (mint mark O), San Francisco (S), Carson City (CC) and Denver (D).

Production stopped in 1904 with coins being produced only at the Philadelphia, New Orleans, and San Francisco mints. When silver dollar production resumed in 1921, the Peace silver dollar design was not ready for the coining presses. Therefore, mint employees revived the Morgan silver dollar design that was used for part of the year until the Peace silver dollar dies were ready for production.

Key Dates, Rarities, and Varieties

The Morgan silver dollars listed below are worth considerably more than common Morgan silver dollars in any condition. As such, these coins are frequently counterfeit or altered from common Morgan dollars. Therefore, before you start celebrating your new found fortune, have the coin authenticated by a reputable coin dealer or third party grading service.

1881 CC

1885 CC

1889 CC

1893 CC

1893 S

1895 Proof

1895 S

Although not extremely rare, the 1878 Morgan silver dollar was minted with four different reverse dies. The first die created had an eagle on the reverse with eight tail feathers. But after some research, the people at the mint realized that the American bald eagle only has seven tail feathers. Therefore, they created a new die with a bald eagle with only seven tail feathers and the fletchings on the arrows parallel. The photos below illustrate the difference between these two different coins. A third reverse has a doubled tail feathers with a set of seven tail feathers over a set of tail feathers. A fourth reverse has seven tail feathers with a slightly tilted fletching on the top arrow.

Photo Illustrations:

Condition or Grade

If your coin is worn and looks similar to the one illustrated in the link below, it is considered a circulated coin.

Photo of a Circulated Morgan Silver Dollar

If your coin looks similar to the one illustrated in the link below and has no evidence of wear due to being in circulation, it is considered an uncirculated coin.

Photo of an Uncirculated Morgan Silver Dollar

Mint Marks

The United States Mint produced the Morgan silver dollar at five different mints: Philadelphia (no mint mark), Carson City Nevada (CC), New Orleans (O), Denver (D) and San Francisco (S). The mint did not produce all coins at all mints in all years. As illustrated in the picture below, you can find the mint mark on the reverse of the coin, just below the bow in the wreath.

Photo of the Morgan Silver Dollar Mint Mark Location

Average Circulated and Uncirculated Values & Prices

Buy price is what you can expect to pay to a coin dealer when you purchase the coin while sell value is what you can expect a to received from the coin dealer if you sell the coin. Buy price, and the sell value for an average circulated, and average uncirculated coins are also presented. These are approximate retail prices and wholesale values. The actual offer you receive from a particular coin dealer will vary depending on the actual grade of the coin and some other factors that determine its worth.