Today, people are growing more and more interested in
collecting rare and valuable old coins. Some people do this for serious
coin collecting and trading, while others do it for the sheer fun and
excitement. Because of its rich history, mysterious past, high silver
content, and beauty, people are becoming more attracted into collecting
coins.
The U.S. Mint has minted coins, on and off, ever since
the year 1974. These coins were made up of many substances including gold,
silver, copper, brass, manganese, zinc, and nickel. But the most popular
coin to both collectors and the general public alike, is the US Silver
Dollar.
A typical US Silver Dollar is composed of 90% silver and
10% copper which is added to increase strength and durability.
History
Silver was very scarce during the early years of US
coinage. For this reason, mintage of silver coins was very limited.
For 32 years starting the year 1804 to 1836, there was no production of silver
coins. It was just too scarce and valuable, almost as valuable and scarce
as gold. But during the 1850’s, the Comstock Lode in Nevada paved way to
the production of large quantities of silver dollars. But even with this,
the supply of silver still played out, resulting into another break in silver
dollar production in the year 1904. Production was again resumed in the
year 1918, following the huge melt of 1918. Again, by 1926, the supply of
silver was running low and was again suspended in 1928. It resumed again
for two years in 1934-1935, and in 1986, the first Silver Eagle dollar (which is
99.9% silver) was made.
Here are examples of the US Silver Dollar and
the years they were minted.
· Flowing Hair (1794-1795)
· Draped Bust
(1795-1804)
· Seated Liberty (1836-1873)
· Trade
(1873-1885)
· Morgan (1878-1921)
· Peace
(1921-1964)
· Eisenhower Head (1971-1978)
· Susan B. Anthony
(1979-1999)
· Sacagawea (2000-Date)
There are six locations that mint US Silver Dollar
coins, and even up to now, some are still operational. These six
include:
Philadelphia (1793-present) – Capped Bust, Sitting
Liberty, Flowing Hair, Trade, Morgan, Peace, Eisenhower, Silver Eagle with no
‘P’ mint mark
New Orleans (1864-1904) – Sitting Liberty, Morgan with
‘O’ mint mark
San Francisco (1859-1992) – Sitting Liberty, Trade,
Morgan, Peace, Eisenhower, Silver Eagle with ‘S’ mint mark
Carson City (1870-1893) – Sitting Liberty, Trade, Morgan
with ‘CC’ mint mark
West Point (1995, 2001-present) – Silver Eagle with ‘W’
mint mark
Denver (1921-1934) – Morgan, Peace with ‘D’ mint
mark
Because the Morgan 1878-1921, Peace 1921-1935 and Silver
Eagles 1986-present are the most readily available and inexpensive compared to
other collectable silver dollars, they are without a doubt considered to be the
most popular US Silver dollar collectables.
In the end, it really is a treasure to posses your very
own American silver dollar. Not only will it bedazzle anyone who is
watching or holding it because of its beauty, but it will also remind every
American of its rich history and past.
