Walter Breen
*Trade Dollar. [1097] Only the one variety seen; rev. of 1881. Flat head and stars are routine. Same comments as to 1880-81 Trades. It appears that some of the silver proof sets of the year must not have contained this by now unpopular denomination. Monthly coinage figures (from the Willem book), combined into quarterly figures and compared with the silver proof set deliveries, yield the following: first quarter, some 670 Trades coined (and presumably delivered) as against 700 silver sets; second, 142 as against 100 sets; third, 60 as against 100 (or 200?) silver sets; fourth, 225 as against 200 sets. So probably 70 and possibly as many as 170 silver sets of this year lacked the trade dollar, the odd pieces of the second and fourth quarters being sold separately. See below.
Silver proof sets. Apparently at least 1100 made, but probably no more than 1030 of them included the trade dollar. In the A. M. Smith hoard, one of his six silver sets lacked it, evidently as obtained from the mint. I recall, long ago, seeing various old auction records of silver sets of 1882-3 minus the trade dollar, but did not then realize the significance of these short sets. Those now extant (outside SI and ANS) are mostly assembled, in some cases perhaps the trade dollar added to an original set lacking it. Cf. CTarrett:310, at $3400.
Gold Dollar. [125] B-1. Clear 2, date slants uB to r., upright of 1 below inner r. curve of O. Generally considered to be very rare, but there are many cleaned and nicked pieces around, and many more deceptive first strikes. Garrett's brought $1300.
Mintage: 25 with the sets Feb. 4, 33 more before March 31, 24 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 16 more before Sept. 30, 12 in fourth quarter, total 125, none reported as melted.
Quarter Eagle. [67] *B-1. Low date, left base of 1 left of center of dentil; polish in and below ear and around BERTY; no recutting in 82. (The deceptive B-2 early business strikes have left base of 1 nearly over r. edge; part of another 8 within upper loop of first 8; traces of recutting above 2, which fade.) Probably over 30 survive, some impaired. The high water mark is probably "Rio Rancho": 101 at $3,700, ex Gilhousen: 243; earlier ones are hardly worth quoting for prices.
Mintage: 25 with sets Feb. 4, 8 more before March 31, 1 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 10 more before Sept. 30, 8 in fourth quarter, total 67.
Three Dollars. [76] Normal 2, leaf left of date very thin; obv. of 1881. Any "proofs" claimed so far from the common "closed 2" blundered die (curved line above 2) are early business strikes. Possibly fewer impaired survivors than in some former years. Cf. Garrett: 473, $4,500; Roach, Geiss: 1640, Grant Pierce: 1269, Jay: 293, Scanlon:2234, $2,600. Probably over 30 survive in all.
Mintage: 25 with sets Feb. 4, 17 more before March 31, 8 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 2 more before Sept. 30, 9 before year's end, total 76.
Half Eagle. [48] Polish around BERTY and eye; date slants minutely up; left base of 1 r. of center. Probably under 15 survive. (1) SI. (2) ANS. (3) Eliasberg. (4) Morgenthau 5/5/39:157, Phila. Estate. (5) Boyd, WCTC: 436. (6) '.'Memorable": 382, same coin? (7) Melish:2187, possibly same as one or both of foregoing. (8) Garrett: 472, fingermarked, slept at $3,750.
Mintage: 25 with sets Feb. 4, 3 more before March 31, 4 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 1 more before Sept. 30, total 48.
Eagle. [44] Slightly low date, slanting die file marks through T, left base of lover r. edge. Rev. Red stripes thin and shallow. Rarer than the half eagle. (1) SI. (2) ANS. (3) Eliasberg. (4) CTarrett:471, $5,000. (5) Amon Carter Sr. & Jr. (6) Boyd, WCTC:687, possibly source of last. (7) Melish:2499. Grossly undervalued.
Mintage: 25 with sets Feb. 4, 2 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 1 more before Sept. 30, 1 more at year's end, total 44.
Double Eagle. [59] Very low date, left base of 1 minutely r. of left edge. Rev. Feathers at back of neck attenuated, not reaching scroll; lys below beak incomplete; both scrolls exceptionally thin; two red stripes at r. thin; these dies apparently also used on the (still rarer) 590 business strikes. Rarer than the more highly touted 1883 and 1884. (1) SI. (2) ANS. (3) Eliasberg. (4) Amon Carter Sr. & Jr. (5) Bell I, Eliasberg, "H. R. Lee", NN 49: 142, Stack, possibly for Lilly. (5) CTarrett:470, $25,000. (6) Newcomer, Boyd, WCTC: 885, "Memorable": 702. (7) Menjou: 1821. This or no. 4 believed ex Atwater: 1274, originally from D. S. Wilson. (8) Melish:986. (9) Miles:907, Ullmer:527, $42,500. Stain above first star. (10) Wolfson :931, possibly same as no. 8. One of these is believed ex Dunham:2325. (11) Davis-CTraves:878 in set. (12) KS 3/65:192, possibly same as one of foregoing. (13) Bell II :918, EF ex-proof, apparently from "Cicero" :22. At least three others are in numismatic circulation, one from a set broken up about 1961 (probably not the Davis-Graves set), but tracing pedigrees is impossible because so few of these have been illustrated.
Mintage: 25 with sets Feb. 14,2 more before March 31, 2 in second quarter, 15 with sets Aug. 12, 5 more before Sept. 30, 10 in 4th quarter, total 59.
Gold proof sets. [40] Some 25 were struck on Feb. 4, 15 on Aug. 12; these cannot be distinguished. Director's Report says 34 sets sold between July 1881 and June 1882, which probably means the remaining 4 of 1881, all 25 of Feb. 1882, total 29 - whence the other 5? Were some made up of individual coins of the last two quarters of 1881 and the second quarter of 1882? One complete 6-piece set was offered as Davis-Graves: 878-883; Garrett's was dispersed for a total of $41,950; and I saw a third around 1961.
Complete proof sets. That in the Smithsonian, cent to double eagle, came from the Coiner for face value as of Feb. 2, or two days before it was supposed to have been made. The date when Brock got his from the mint is unknown, but it went to J. Pierpont Morgan and is now in ANS.