With a mintage of more than 14 million, the 1879 Morgan Dollars struck at the Philadelphia Mint were the most abundant issue of the new series at the time. This would remain the case until 1885, when mintages began to swell to higher levels for a period of several years. All examples of this issue are found with the type 3 reverse.
The 1879 silver dollars are relatively abundant as suggested by the mintage figure, although availability does greatly diminish for coins graded above MS65. The coins were released both at the time of production and later in the 1950′s and 1960′s from Treasury vaults.
The Philadelphia Mint struck 1,100 of the 1879 Proof Morgan Dollars for collectors of the day.
1879 Morgan Dollar Mintage and Specifications
- Mintage: 14,806,000 (circulation), 1,100 (proof)
- Mint mark: none (Philadelphia)
- Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper
- Weight: 26.73 grams
- Diameter: 38.1 mm