MELT VALUES / SILVER
Morgan & Peace Silver Dollar (90% Silver)
Melt value now SNAPSHOT
$53.40
53.4× face value
Designer
George T. Morgan (1878); Anthony de Francisci (Peace, 1921)
Years struck
Morgan 1878–1904, 1921; Peace 1921–1935; both revived 2021–
Mints
Philadelphia, New Orleans (O), San Francisco (S), Carson City (CC), Denver (D)
~657 million Morgans struck — then the 1918 Pittman Act melted 270 million of them; survival, not mintage, sets rarity.
THE STORY
Born of the Bland-Allison Act's silver-purchase mandate, the Morgan dollar was struck in quantities the economy never needed and sat in Treasury vaults for generations — which is why gem examples exist by the million and why the GSA's 1970s Carson City sales electrified the hobby. The Peace dollar closed the arc: commemorating the end of the Great War, its last circulating year (1935) ended the silver dollar as money. Every ounce-heavy 'cartwheel' carries 0.7734 ozt — and more history per gram than anything else in the melt table.
Morgan's Liberty was modeled by Philadelphia schoolteacher Anna Willess Williams — she was hounded by the press when identified and reportedly lost her anonymity but kept the job.
KEY DATES WORTH REAL MONEY
Check these before treating any coin as melt.
| 1893-S Morgan | 100,000 minted — the circulation king; six figures in mint state |
| 1889-CC Morgan | Carson City's rarest |
| 1895 Morgan | 'King of the Morgans' — proof-only survivors |
| 1921 Peace High Relief | First-year high relief, one year only |
| 1928 Peace | Lowest Peace mintage (360,649) |
Think you have one? Check recent auction records before selling — and read our grading basics first.
SPECIFICATIONS
Grading: where wear shows first
Wear lands first on Liberty's cheek and the hair above her forehead; on Peace dollars, the hair over the ear. The cheek is why so few circulated Morgans grade high - every pocket rub shows.
Never clean a coin. Ever. Cleaning permanently destroys collector value — dark original toning is worth more than shiny damage.
Counterfeit check
The most-counterfeited classic US coin, mostly cast/struck Chinese fakes of common AND key dates. Weight (26.73 g), diameter (38.1 mm), and the ring test catch most; key dates (1893-S, 1889-CC) deserve certification, period.
Gear that settles it: an electromagnetic verifier, a calibrated scale and calipers — counterfeit basics.
QUESTIONS PEOPLE ACTUALLY ASK
Is my Morgan dollar rare?
Probably not - hundreds of millions survive, and common dates trade near melt plus a premium. But check date + mint mark against the key-date table above before selling: an 1893-S in any condition is a five-figure coin.
Should I clean a Morgan dollar?
Never. A cleaned Morgan loses most of its collector premium permanently. Dark toning is original skin - collectors pay MORE for it.
What is a common Morgan worth at melt?
0.7734 ozt of silver - about $53 at $69 spot - but even worn common dates usually bring a few dollars over melt because demand for the design never dies.
Coin image: Wikimedia Commons — Public domain — Brandon Grossardt for the coin image. George T. Morgan for the coin design..
