Why do you like the Morgan Dollar?

I am just curious as to if, and why you like the Morgan dollar. For some reason it just isn't one of my favorite coins. In studying ebay pulse, and trends I can see that it is very popular, but what makes it so popular? Is it the amount of luster in the higher grades? I sometimes wonder if it is popular, because people can afford to buy MS. Would love any feedback, I really have no idea of the history, or market of these coins.

 

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There are any number of reasons why this coin is so popular among collectors.....it has size, it's precious metal, it's a coin struck by the hundreds of millions, it wasn't popular to the people of that era and so was stored away in vaults only to be released for the growing number of collectors of the last half-century. How many other coins of the late 19th century were similarly preserved in such fashion?

From a historical viewpoint, you might want to read The Crime of 1873: The Comstock Connection by Van Ryzin. It's a little slow reading with all of the footnotes, inserts and references, but it will give you a good idea of what was going on with the silver mining industry and the politics involved at the time.

Of course there is also the "feud" that went on between Charles Barber and Geoorge Morgan because they didn't like each other, and Barber didn't like the fact that many people considered Morgan to be a better engraver than his boss, Barber.

I'm sure that others can come up with other reasons.

Chris

 

I am not the biggest fan of the morgan dollar, but I do like all coins that have somebody's personal impression of Lady Liberty. My favorite ones are (Of course) The WL half by Adolph Weinman and the Mercury dime by Adolph Weinman. My next favorite would be anything Charles E. Barber made, even pattern type coins. But not the biggest fan of the morgan. The only reason I know of it being so popular is that peoople buy it for the Junk value because it is easily obtainable and more silver in one coin. Also, with the UNC Morgans, I think you are almost right with the luster but also the public appeal. People want to complete their sets of Morgans and some people just want the best Registry set of Morgans. MS grades of the Morgan is quite common but lower grade ones are more common because they were actually used on a day to day basis (nothing at all like the presidential dollars now)

Just my 2c worth.

~Cannyn

 

For me it's the history of the series. I did this thread awhile back http://www.cointalk.com/t113241/ imo, the melts, hoards, and releases really make for an interesting history. I also like the design of the coin, and the ability to obtain high grade examples, since I prefer MS morgans to circulated examples.

 

I have to disagree with this. Uncirculated specimens outnumber circulated specimens by about 4-to-1. The people of the era didn't like them because they were too big, so almost as soon as they were struck, they were bagged and stored away.

Chris

 

I like them mostly because of the beauty of the design and the way the design portrays the North & South coming together after the civil war. I also like the size, the silver content, and the ability to find most dates in BU condition easily. The harder to get dates present the perfect amount of challenge. Also, if I ever want to sell them, it should be pretty easy.

 

I think the Morgan Dollar is so popular solely because it is so readily available AND everybody else collects them.
Millions were brought back from the Nevada Gambling Casino's as souvenir's in the 40's, 50's and 60's and since they never circulated through daily commerce, folks just naturally set them aside. Couple that with the fact that so many Casino Baron's often displayed their collections and the average Joe didn't really have a chance.

I compare the ready availability for the collecting of Morgans right up there with the Lincoln cents. Folks start off collecting the the cents from pocket change and small hoard searches and then quickly graduate to purchasing uncirculated examples. Morgans which get passed down from parents usually initiates the Morgan collector.

Affordability plays an important part in any coins popularity and since we're all just a bunch of cattle anyway, if everybody else collects them then we naturally follow the herd.

I guess what I'm saying is that next to the Lincoln Cent, the Morgan Dollar is a good coin to spark collecting interest since it's unusual and readily available.

BTW, I collect these on a sporadic basis myself and have entertained thoughts of starting a DANSCO simply because everybody else has them but it's simply never happened. I guess once I do make the decision, I won't have too much difficulty completing a set.

 

Really? I never knew that 4-1 ratio. I do know where you are coming from with the dollar being worth much more back then and the most used coin being half and below, I know the Morgan wasn't widely popular as the paper dollar, due to storage and weight differences, but if I were to be from that era, I would probably store them too. With the UNC morgans, yes, they were pretty common like the GSA CC Morgans. Widely popular because they are all in exquisite condition from sitting in the mint never being used.

Oh and I am not quite fond because I can't afford them on a 16yr old paycheck.

You are quite right.

~Cannyn

 

In one big sentence : I think it is a mysterious coin - Mona Lisa in Small OR Coin million faces - If this coin did not exist I would not have entered to this field !

My small ( I am new in this field ) collection :

 

I've never been much of a fan of Morgan dollars, as well as Peace dollars. They seem to get marked up way too easily, but I guess that's just what happens to bigger coins.

 

I like them because they look great bright and shiny or well worn and gray.

 

Depends, the 1921 was quite commonly used from what I was told. My dad once told me his dad (my grandfather) went to go buy a car back in the late 50's. The salesman asked how he intended to pay, he whips out a big bag that had 1,000 Morgan's (my dad recalls most being 1921 Morgans) in it and throws it down on the salesman's desk. Too bad cars don't cost 1,000 bucks anymore...

I like Morgans but not hard up on collecting a bunch of them. I have about 20 in my collection so far.

 

a picture is worth 1000 words ...

 

A lot of great answers here already but one that hasn't been mentioned would be the perceived long term investment of collecting morgans since they have such a large collector base. It would make them easier to sell in the future plus value trends have been high over the last 10-20 years.

 

I love Morgan Silver Dollar the Images Obverse/Reverse is perfectly beautiful in my eyes. The Cartwheel Luster or natural Toned to add on,Mint state Condition is nice to keep.

My 1879 O Morgan Silver Dollar.

 

Morgan Dollars circulated very little "back in the day". Their creation was the result of the political efforts of the Silver Mining Industry which convinced the US Government that they needed a one dollar coin. Most Banks only carried them because they were required by law to exchange a one dollar note for a silver dollar any time a customer demanded.

The reality is that, on a regular basis, these coins were only used by the gaming casino's and nothing else. Those that left the casino's and ended up being spent, suffered the exact same fate as today's Presidential Dollars. From Mint to gaming table to pocket to store to bank and then back into storage. Morgan Dollars were very rarely ever ordered by merchants to make change since they were simply too bulky to fit into a cash drawer. A $20 roll, which was the standard roll size, wouldn't even fit entirely into a cash register drawer.

I'd go along woth Chris's statement that more uncirculated examples exist than circulated simply because they never really circulated like the quarters, dimes, nickels, and cents. They just didn't fit! Either in a budget or a cash drawer.

As for the $1,000 bag of Morgans mentioned above? You can bet your next paycheck that they went from the car dealer straight to the bank. That, is not circulation.

 

I collect Morgans exclusively.(I have collected others in the past) They cover a growth period in America and the Wild West 1878-1921. They are beautiful, large roughly 1 ounce. Semi affordable. They came from 4 different mints. Each mint has a different luster to it. Their value has increase steadily

 

It's my favorite U.S. coin because of the interesting history associated with it's design, and production.

 

Actually, they are slightly more than 3/4 of an oz, and quite a distance to roughly an ounce.

 

To be exact, it's .77344 oz.