Am I crazy or just sentimental ??

[justoneguy]

I really like morgan dollars and have paid a premium for them.
sellers would tell me how nice or how worn the coins were,
always with the implecation that nicer coins are better to own.
that's true both numismatically + for weight content.
However,
I really like my worn out morgans.
the BU coins i just picture as owned by a greedy cattle baron.
he would wrap them up neatly in a cloth, then hide his earthly treasures.
But now the dirty, worn coins, he would pay out to the ranch hands.
that's what is so interesting to me, their journey.
did he take them to the saloon + get drunk? rent a lady of the evening?
save 'em up and buy a six shooter?
I always picture the coins going to town in a horse drawn wagon, buying supplies for a month.
the movies alway show paying for a shot of wiskey with a dollar coin.
that seems way too expensive!
does anyone know where i could look up the prices of common things in the late 1800"s ?
i would think a shot with a beer back was a nickel, but who knows?

[NDFarmer]

I agree with you. Morgans are my favorite coin also. I have always thought it is better to own a hundred $30.00 Morgans than it is to own one $3,000.00 Morgan. But maybe I am wrong. And I also have wondered every time I buy another one from the 1880's what kind of a story that coin could tell.

[knibloe]

The house that I live in has been was built by my family. They moved here in 1837. I have found two large cents 1820 and 1821 while metal detecting. I have often wondered what they would have bought with the coins and if they missed them when they lost them.

I also found a Canadian large cent. I dont rememvber the year. Later, I learned that my great grand father went fishing up in Canada once per year. I imagine that he brought it back with him on one of his trips.

I agree, I like old worn coins. You can feel and handle them. You don't have to keep them lock up behind plastic.

[GA-Silver]

Or getting paid a Morgan dollar for a hard days work..

[scrapman1077]

Just got in over 1200 of these, 999 fine silver !

GSMintMorganobv.jpg (59.4 KiB) Viewed 670 times

[inflationhawk]

Your crazy. Just kidding, you should buy what makes you happy. I liked your imaginative stories about a worn out Morgan's history, it gives me new consideration for them.

[Morsecode]

Nothing better than a Morgan. I've been carrying a 1900 around in my pocket for years...still looks great.

Today I picked up an 1833 50¢ piece. I may retire the cartwheel for a spell

[Corsair]

The good doctor and I were having a discussion about this. As you probably know, he's a sucker for those shiny, mirror-like, gaudy Morgans. Like you, I prefer the ones that have some history - not the coins that were imprisoned right after coming off the presses. Sure, they aren't as valuable, or eye-catching, but if you think about them, those coins could have been spent at a bar in 1890...by whom, for what, that remains unseen.

[whatsnext]

I recall them paying for the bottle(but leaving it) with morgans in tv shows.

The only thing I like about morgans are her hair. The rest of it could have been more artistic. Peace dollars to me are the most beautiful dollar coin, the eagle at rest after some trial.
Walking libertys are almost perfection in coin design and show two symbolic scenes.
Mecury dimes are what I picture Rome would have issued. It just looks governmental.

[inflationhawk]

To me, the most classic coin is actually the original Washington quarter from 1932 thru the 1990s with George on the obverse and the eagle on the reverse. Only because it's what I grew up with. The Mercury dime is right there too though.

[Rodebaugh]

A lot of sentimental with a dab o' crazy.

Oh boy, a morgan dollar thread. I have a fair amount of circulated morgans. Matter of fact, that is what most of my bullion core is made up of. However, I also have some real dandys. It was easy to spend money back in the day just as it is easy to spend it now. The fact that a coin minted in the 1880’s has set uncirculated in pristine condition and can be bought for a small fraction above the circulated version is a no brainer to me…..hmmm buy a junk call morgan for $35 or a brilliant uncirculated morgan for $50. As for the high dollar coins; well that’s numismatics. Either your game or you’re not.


Here is some eye candy compliments of the Doc.
The 1885 is in my collection and I wouldn't sell it for double book. (let that be a testiment to the wow power of a purdy morgan)

[PreservingThePast]

I really like morgan dollars and have paid a premium for them.
sellers would tell me how nice or how worn the coins were,
always with the implecation that nicer coins are better to own.
that's true both numismatically + for weight content.
However,
I really like my worn out morgans.
the BU coins i just picture as owned by a greedy cattle baron.
he would wrap them up neatly in a cloth, then hide his earthly treasures.
But now the dirty, worn coins, he would pay out to the ranch hands.
that's what is so interesting to me, their journey.
did he take them to the saloon + get drunk? rent a lady of the evening?
save 'em up and buy a six shooter?
I always picture the coins going to town in a horse drawn wagon, buying supplies for a month.
the movies alway show paying for a shot of wiskey with a dollar coin.
that seems way too expensive!
does anyone know where i could look up the prices of common things in the late 1800"s ?
i would think a shot with a beer back was a nickel, but who knows?

There was a book my son had when young and I used it a lot when I volunteered at his school and tutored children, especially in reading. It was extremely surprising to me that normal things like potatoes and onions, etc were extremely expensive. Almost costing more than we might pay today. I can't remember if the story revolved around gold rush in CA or in Alaska or if it was something to do with Idaho area. My brain just does not work well these days, sorry. But it really amazed me how expensive some normal things actually were.

Try doing some internet searches to see if you can find out what average/normal items might have cost back then. Also, remember the expression: I owe my soul to the company store. Depending on where they worked, there was only one place to shop, etc and they couldn't go to a Wal-mart for a lower price. So they shopped where they could, and all their wages went to pay their tab.

I too love looking at old coins and wondering their history. So awesome!

Enjoy your coin searches, everyone.

[PreservingThePast]

I agree with you. Morgans are my favorite coin also. I have always thought it is better to own a hundred $30.00 Morgans than it is to own one $3,000.00 Morgan. But maybe I am wrong. And I also have wondered every time I buy another one from the 1880's what kind of a story that coin could tell.

I agree with your thinking. More rather than just one. Numismatic coins are really cool, especially in their beauty. However, to me it is way more cool to think I could own a lot of them and wonder about their history rather than just one pretty coin. I still do not know for sure the reason that my mom always carried one in her coin purse, unless it is for the reason another on here suggested so that she always had money on her and could not be considered a vagrant. I know she lived through the depression and very hard times having been born in 1913. Also another unknown about my mom.......she loved the Mercury dime but I don't know the significance. Every time I see one of those coins, my instant reaction is to remember my mom.

Looking at pretty coins protected in plastic is nice. Handling carefully an older coin and wondering who might have had it in their pocket or purse and allowed it to pass through their fingers to buy something special or something needed.......now that is a special gift that has been passed down to us.

Enjoy your coins, everyone.

[jtlee321]

This thread is fantastic! I am on both sides of the fence on this one. I love to hold the old worn coins and imagine the history behind them. I also love to look at a BU MS Morgan or any other old coin and just fathom the fact that it was never used over all those years.

This thread inspired a thought that I think would make an interesting project for a student in art school making a short movie. It would be similar to the beginning of "Lord of War". It could start out with a black screen when a miner breaks through with the light of his candle in the Comstock mine. Suddenly the perspective of the camera is in a mine cart going through a tunnel on it's way to the smelter. Next thing that happens is the camera is going between rollers and being punched out on a stamping machine. Suddenly the camera is arriving at the Carson City Mint in a canvas bag and loaded into a press. It is then stamped into a Morgan or Seated Liberty Dollar and rebagged. Now it is at a bank where the camera sees light again as it is being handed across a counter to some prospector. Your imagination can take it from there. Just imagine how interesting it would be to witness this journey unfold in front of your eyes.

I think this is why I love the older 90% coins that are worn. I can hold it in my hand and imagine it's life's story. Oh what it could tell you..

[RR GUY]

I am the proud owner of just over 1000 Morgan and Peace dollars, half of which were left to me by my grandfathers. As they say, old men have old money. The other half I have bought over the last twenty years. When silver was very low in the late 90s I was paying between $5-7 for Culls and about $15-20 for BU/AU coins. I am the lucky owner of about 20 1921 Peace Dollars and have several choice CC examples. Anyway, I love my Morgan dollars and for years I used them all the time. My friends would love playing poker at my house, becuase we used Morgans as chips. There was nothing like seeing $5-700 Morgan and Peace dollars all over the table. There is nothing like the sound of throwing more chips on the pot. I of course never used the rare or uncirculated coins for play. We used them up until a few months ago until I got nervous about having $15-20K chips on the table. In December I was stacking them in their $20 tubes, when I came up about 4 short. Clearly one of my "friends" had put a few in his pocket, maybe as payback for a losing night. Frankly I didn't care about the $150 or so in value lost, but rather I was sentimental that these coins had been in the family for at least 70 years. Needless to say, we now use plastic chips that are made in China, and the Morgans, well they stay locked away for my eyes only. I encourage you to use your Morgans, take them out show them around, play cards with them.