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 Replies: 25 / Views: 1,678 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
716 Posts |
I'm 75 years old and have collected coins since I was 7. My first collection, like many of us was putting Lincoln cents in a Whitman Folder. Presently I consider myself a casual collector of Morgan dollars and have 26 dollars, all different dates/mintmarks. I like toned coins. All of my dollars are toned. Yes, I know many prefer their silver coins to be white (they're silver, aren't they silvery?). My question is this, why do toned coins predominate in certain dates/mintmarks? Fortunately, for me anyways, the dates and mintmarks with toning tend to gravitate toward the less expensive ones. I have gotten to the point that I can't find coins to purchase because they don't appear to exist toned. Why do toned Morgans seem to be restricted to certain dates and mintmarks? Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so. My own best guess is that perhaps certain mints, Philadelphia and New Orleans, purchased mint bags with high sulfur content. I don't know. Don't recall ever seeing an article in Coin World or Numismatic News that adresses this, and I've been a subscriber for 50+ years. My second question is, "Why did the San Francisco mint turn out consistently superior Morgan dollars than the other three (four if you count Denver--I don't)? Did they have better machinery? A better trained/managed workforce? Something in the SF water or sourdough bread? |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
2115 Posts |
Could it be that the least expensive Morgans were placed inside the old cardboard holders, while the more expensive ones were stored in tubes appropriately? I'm also a fan and love toned coins, here are a few of my Morgans...  |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
716 Posts |
Oooooo, a 78-S! That's a date I need.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
716 Posts |
CoinForMe, not sure your supposition about tubes vs cardboard holders works. First of all, I'm not sure they had tubes in the 19th Century and well into the 20th Century even. I think collectors put their coins in "cabinets," or envelopes "back in the day." In addition, I think for a long while Morgan dollars were not as highly priced/prized as they are today such that relatively expensive dates were not as well known. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
716 Posts |
Just for fulll transparency (I think that's a term that's currently in favor) here's a list of my dollars that I've been able to locate with toning:
CC: "81, '82, '83, '84.
S: '79, '80, '81, '82.
O: '83, '84, '85, '99, '00, '01, '02, '04.
P: '80, '82, '85, '86, '87, '88, '96, '98, '03, '04.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2115 Posts |
.howell1018 That's a very impressive list of Morgan "toned" dollars.. . . . . Cardboard 2x2s: ~late 1930s-1940s - 90 years . . . . Plastic coin Tubes: ~ 1950s - 70 Years Plenty of time to tone a Morgan coin inside one of these... Interesting topic, howell1018, thanks for bringing it up... 
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Pillar of the Community
United States
716 Posts |
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Moderator
United States
187582 Posts |
I liked toned coins, so no hate from me.  An interesting conversation. I do not really know Morgan dollars, so I cannot answer the question as to why some dates are difficult to find toned. I look forward to the discussion  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
24906 Posts |
Quote:
the dates and mintmarks with toning tend to gravitate toward the less expensive ones Don't forget that dealers have been dipping coins for many years. Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4468 Posts |
All Morgan silver dollar dates and mint marks tone in all grades. When you use the word toning, are you referring to colorful toning with eye appeal? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2115 Posts |
Quote:All Morgan silver dollar dates and mint marks tone in all grades. When you use the word toning, are you referring to colorful toning with eye appeal? I have no clue who you are referring to in this question of yours. Try to address the question with a name or quote their message... If the question was directed to me, I posted two examples earlier of what I like in toning... |
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Moderator
United States
187582 Posts |
When there is no quote, you have to assume that was for the OP.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2115 Posts |
Quote:
When there is no quote, you have to assume that was for the OP. Opps, I thought that question was from the OP... Sorry...  |
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Moderator
United States
187582 Posts |
Gotcha!  In case you missed it, The OP will have "Topic Starter" under their name in their replies. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4468 Posts |
Quote:All Morgan silver dollar dates and mint marks tone in all grades. When you use the word toning, are you referring to colorful toning with eye appeal? The question is for the OP. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2115 Posts |
Quote:
The question is for the OP. Thanks, Slider23, we had established that with the help of jbuck..  |
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Replies: 25 / Views: 1,678 |
Posted 11/05/2025 8:14 pm
