The story behind the Morgan dollar

Few coins are as instantly recognizable — or as widely collected — as the Morgan silver dollar. Struck from 1878 to 1904, and again for a single year in 1921, it carries the weight of a very particular moment in American history.

Comstock silver

The Morgan was born out of the Bland–Allison Act, which required the Treasury to buy millions of dollars of silver each month — much of it flowing from Nevada’s famous Comstock Lode. Designer George T. Morgan modeled Liberty on a Philadelphia schoolteacher, Anna Willess Williams, giving the coin its distinctive profile.

A common-date Morgan in the right grade is one of the best first coins a new collector can own.

Why collectors love them

They’re large, heavy, ninety-percent silver, and available across a huge range of dates and mint marks — from affordable common issues to genuine rarities like the 1893-S. That range is exactly what makes them so collectible: there’s always another one to chase.