The United States Silver Dollar

The United States silver dollar has always been a good option, the government thought, and it became even more important when the country was struggling. Silver was becoming more easily found, though in the first years of the striking of these coins, silver was as rare and as valuable as gold was. The first coins were not struck until 1794, although two years prior the government created the Mint Act of April 2, 1792. The coin was just the start of a long and storied history of these coins.

The United States silver dollar was produced over time in various designs. The initial design featured the Flowing Hair Liberty. In 1795, the coin\’s design was changed and the Draped Bust Liberty was introduced. This design will continue until 1803. But, during that time there were two distinct reverse styles. A unique fact is that in 1797, there was a very low amount of silver coin minted, at just 7776 silver dollars. This was because of a lack of silver bullion deposited in the United States Mint.

Take a look at the history of the minting of United States silver dollar coins:

1. The early coins were produced as stated above, with the initial designs of 1794 through 1795 being the rarest.

2. The 1804 coin is very limited and considered one of the rarest coins of all time.

3. The Seated Liberty dollar coin was produced starting in 1836, after a long, 32 years of no production of these coins, though few people realized it. In fact, the coins were only minted in this year due to the lobbying of the silver industry convince Congress to do so. This coin was minted until 1873.

4. The Gold Dollar Coins took over for some time. These coins were minted from 1849 through 1889.

5. The Trade Dollar coins were minted between 1873 and 1885.

6. The Morgan silver dollar coins were one of the more popular types and are still favorites of collectors. These coins were minted in 1878 through 1904 and then again in 1921.

7. The Peace dollar coin was minted right after World War I in an tribute to the new found peace the country was looking for. It was minted from 1921 through 1935.

8. The Eisenhower dollar was minted from 1971 through 1978.

9. The Susan B Anthony, one of today\’s more popular collector pieces for beginners was minted from 1979 through 1981 and then again in 1999.

The valuing of any of the United States silver dollar coins is dependent on many factors including how rare the coin is, with some mintage years being far more expensive and valuable than others. In addition, the quality condition of the coin also plays a role in its value. Uncirculated and proof sets are available for some of the mintage, especially in more recent years. Before purchasing any of these coins, though, you do need to focus on the quality of the individual coins over any other factor.