1889-CC $1, PL MS61PL Certification #83916983, PCGS #7191

Charles Morgan

The 1889-CC Morgan Dollar

The Carson City Mint is a legendary site for the production of Morgan Dollars. Its mystique is directly tied to the folklore of the American West, even though Nevada only claims a small portion of the overall Western mythos. But what a captivating piece it owns: the roaring Comstock Lode, the early frontier writings of Mark Twain, and the exploits of Snowshoe Thompson, the legendary postman who navigated treacherous mountain passes between California and Nevada on skis, frequently rescuing stranded travelers along the way.

Despite the Congressional mandage to strike coins by the millions, there wasn't much practical need for Morgan Dollars in Carson City, or anywhere else for that matter. The branch mint's primary silver dollar output ground to a halt when the facility was abruptly shuttered in September 1885 by Democratic President Grover Cleveland. Its operations were only restored four years later, following the election of Republican President Benjamin Harrison in 1889.

However, because of this four-year closure, both the workforce and the machinery suffered from a lack of readiness. Coin production could not begin immediately, meaning no coins were delivered to the Treasury Department until October of that year. Ultimately, the Nevada mint compressed its entire 1889 Morgan dollar mintage of 350,000 coins into just three final monthly batches:

• October: 100,000 coins
• November: 100,000 coins
• December: 150,000 coins

Likely due to this hasty restart of operations, 1889-CC Morgan Dollars (#7190) generally exhibit a mediocre strike. Despite this, they possess excellent luster, and nearly a quarter of surviving examples are considered semi-prooflike or prooflike.

The Geat Meldown Makes it a Rarity

While the 1889-CC does not have the absolute lowest mintage of the series, it stands as one of the most elusive of all Morgan dollar branch-mint issues. Although 350,000 coins were originally struck, the vast majority, perhaps 93% to 95%, were melted down under the 1918 Pittman Act. Furthermore, unlike other former "rarities" (such as the 1885-CC) that became relatively common when massive Treasury Department hoards were released in the 1960s, the government held back virtually no 1889-CCs. In fact, the famous GSA hoard contained only a single specimen. Today, this key date is second only to the legendary 1893-S (#7222) in overall scarcity.

Collecting the 1889-CC Morgan Dollar

Because the Treasury paid out many of the remaining 1889-CCs into circulation during the 1930s, most surviving examples are heavily circulated. Currently, approximately 7,500 coins are graded Very Fine or lower. Yet, demand so heavily outstrips supply that finding any genuine example for under $1,500 is a challenge.

For collectors looking to acquire higher-grade specimens, the market scales dramatically. The 1889-CC sells for between $15,000 and $20,000 in PCGS AU grades. From there, prices ladder up quickly, climbing to around $50,000 for a PCGS MS63 and surpassing $100,000 for a PCGS MS64.

Notable Coins

The finest known 1889-CC Morgan Dollar is graded PCGS MS68 and is known as the Mills-Clapp-Eliasberg specimen. This toned masterpiece represents the absolute pinnacle of Morgan Dollar collecting. Last seen crossing the auction block, it realized a staggering $881,250 (over $1.1 million adjusted for inflation).

More recently, a hoard of 35 uncirculated 1889-CC Morgan Dollars was recently certified by PCGS in grades ranging from PCGS MS61 to PCGS MS64DMPL. These coins had long been in the posession of a family from Nevada, whose ancestor had apparently acquired the coins in two rolls from a local bank. This find increased the total PCGS population of Mint State 1889-CC Morgan Dollars by 5%.

The Breakdown of the "Desert Find"

• VAM 2 (13 coins):
  • PCGS MS61 (x2) 
  • PCGS MS62 (x6)
  • CGS MS63 (x3)
  • PCGS MS63+ (x1)
  • PCGS MS62 PL (x1)
• VAM 3 (13 coins):
  • PCGS MS62 (x1) 
  • PCGS MS62 PL (x5)
  • PCGS MS63 PL (x1)
  • PCGS MS63+ PL (x1)
  • PCGS MS62 DMPL (x2)
  • PCGS MS63 DMPL (x2)
  • PCGS MS64 DMPL (x1)
• VAM 5 (8 coins):
  • PCGS MS62 (x3)
  • PCGS MS63 (x3)
  • PCGS MS64 (x2)
• VAM 5A (1 coin):
  • PCGS MS64+ (x1)

* * *