In 1964, the year before the discontinuation of silver coinage, an official audit of the vaults of the Treasury Building in Washington, D.C., uncovered an astounding three million U.S. silver dollars struck in the late 1800s at the historic Carson City Mint.

Though it had produced coinage for only a little over two decades, from 1870 to 1893, the U.S. Mint at Carson City, Nevada, left behind a magnificent legacy.

Most coins struck at the Mint are scarce to rare, some very rare. Yet no matter the rarity or market value, each coin struck at the Carson City Mint harkens back to an era in U.S. history like no other: the legendary Wild West the the great bonanza years of the late 19th century. A rich and fascination series of events during those years culminated in the production of the Carson City Morgan Dollar, a coin with an impressive historical pedigree and a unique double-letter mintmark.

The boom years of silver mining in Nevada and the fabulous Comstock Lode led to the creation of the Carson City Mint.

Originally, most of Nevada's silver ore was shipped to the mint in San Francisco, a practice which was expensive, risky, and created little benefit for Nevada. The owners of the Comstock mines began to lobby Congress for a branch mint in the Nevada Territory. The Nevada Mint Bill was passed on March 3, 1863.

The first coins struck at the Carson City Mint were silver dollars of the Liberty Seated type, followed shortly thereafter by gold eagles, half eagles, and a number of double eagles.

During the first years of operation, the Carson City Mint failed to produce significant numbers of any denomination. It wasn't until 1875 that coins bearing the CC mintmark were struck in large numbers.

It wasn't commerce or public demand that gave birth to the Morgan silver dollar. It was political pressure from the Western silver-mine owners that brought it into existence. The public's reception of the Morgan dollar was less than enthusiastic, and it was given nicknames just like those of its predecessors. Since the eagle was viewed by many as somewhat scrawny, the coins became known as "buzzard dollars" and later as "dollars of our daddies" and "daddy dollars."

The story of the Morgan silver dollar is a Cinderella tale if ever there was one. Today, Morgan dollars are among the most widely pursued and collected of all U.S. coins. To help you learn more about the fabled "last of a legacy" Carson City Morgan Dollars, Whitman Publishing offers a fascinating guidebook full of imagery and insight. Three numismatic experts (Adam Crum, Selby Ungar, and Jeff Oxman) chronicle the amazing history of the California Gold Rush, its effects on silver mining and the development of Nevada, and the birth of the Carson City Mint.