1904 Morgan Silver Dollar

About This Coin

This 1904 Morgan Silver Dollar is a raw (unslabbed) Brilliant Uncirculated example with a strong strike and full original luster. Struck at the Philadelphia Mint (no mintmark), it represents the final year of regular Morgan Dollar production before the series was suspended and later revived for a single final year in 1921. The 1904 Philadelphia issue had a mintage of 2,788,000 — modest by Morgan standards — and finding examples in true BU condition with uncleaned surfaces and strong eye appeal is increasingly difficult.

The Coinage Act of 1873 demonetized silver, leading to the demise of the silver dollar. Although Trade dollars were produced from 1873–1878, they were meant for circulation overseas and were not legal tender in America. In response to the sour economic conditions that persisted through much of the 1870s, and as a sop to Western suppliers of silver, Congress passed the Bland-Allison Act in 1878. The Act required the U.S. government to purchase large quantities of silver and turn it into silver dollars — restoring the dollar denomination in the form of the Morgan dollar. Named after its designer, George T. Morgan, the Morgan dollar is one of the most popular of all American coins, prized for its large size, abundant supply, and pleasing appearance.

Morgan Dollars were struck without interruption from 1878–1904, then again in 1921. U.S. Mints that produced Morgan Dollars include Philadelphia, New Orleans, San Francisco, Denver, and Carson City. Mintmarks for all mints except Philadelphia were placed on the reverse of the coins, just beneath the ribbon bow of the wreath. The 1904 issue in this listing bears no mintmark, confirming its Philadelphia origin.

Key dates in the Morgan series include 1889-CC, 1893-S, and 1895 (Proof only). Other dates such as 1895-O are considered condition rarities — common in low grade but extremely rare in high grade. While the 1904 Philadelphia is not a key date, its availability in pristine Raw BU condition makes it an attractive and affordable entry point for collectors building a date set or seeking a high-quality type example.

Silver Dollars were once the mainstay of Las Vegas casinos, where they were used in slot machines and other gaming devices. Once silver prices advanced beyond the face value of the coins, the casinos converted to chips and tokens. Much of the popularity of Silver Dollars can be attributed to three watershed events: the sale of the Redfield hoard in the 1970s; the GSA sales of the 1980s; and the Continental-Illinois Bank Hoard of the 1980s. The Redfield hoard consisted of hundreds of bags of silver dollars, most Uncirculated and including a wide range of dates, primarily from the San Francisco Mint. The GSA sales consisted of millions of Carson City mint silver dollars discovered in Treasury vaults in the 1970s — coins that had apparently never circulated. The Continental-Illinois Bank Hoard was even larger than the Redfield hoard, and the overall quality exceeded that of both the Redfield and GSA hoards.

Popular collecting methods include high-grade date sets, complete sets from low to high grade, and by VAM varieties. VAM (the acronym for Van Allen-Mallis) refers to a set of Morgan Dollar varieties — some insignificant and others important enough to be identified at arm's length. At $650, this raw BU 1904 Morgan offers excellent value for a collector seeking an attractive, uncirculated example of America's most iconic silver dollar series.