What happened to 12,000 1895-P silver dollars? 0

[RWB]

What happened to 12,000 1895-P silver dollars?

The fact that 12,000 silver dollars were struck at the Philadelphia Mint on June 28, 1895 is well documented and beyond any reasonable dispute. But since then, not one circulation-quality coin has been discovered. All 1895-P dollars examined by experts, authentication companies and others have been revealed as circulated proofs – one of 880 proof dollars made that year for sale to coin collectors.

After completing my 2006 research article on manufacture of the coins, I attempted to determine the fate of these 12,000 pieces of silver. Initially the coins, in 12 canvas bags were placed at the front of a vault cage and promptly forgotten. Other dollar bags for 1896-1899 were packed on top and around the 1895s. Their only distinguishing mark was the notation “1895-P” printed in black ink on each bag.

In general, the US Mints did not segregate coins by date. It really did not matter what date was on coins in a silver dollar vault and cage, only that there was a specific dollar amount of money present in silver dollars. This value was attested to by a special vault seal that listed the contents of a vault and was dated and signed by several mint officers. Breaking the seal required permission from the Superintendent and Mint Bureau Head Quarters.

Initial storage thus created an orderly jumble of coin dates – a confusion in which 12 lonely bags could easily get ignored. But a much greater problem occurred.

A New Philadelphia Mint building was scheduled to open in 1901/2 and as soon as basement vaults were complete in September 1901, transfer of silver dollars from old to new building began. In addition, many of the old coin bags had deteriorated and millions of coins had to be sorted, counted and put into boxes. The new mint has a single large “Silver Vault” where all silver coins would be stored. Silver dollars were in a separate part, but not sorted by anything except whether they were in boxes or bags.

When transfer began, approximately $1.2 million in dollars was moved per day. Some days these were boxed dollars; some days they were bagged coins; some days a mixture. Extant letters comment that coins were taken from “Vault C” in the old mint to the “Silver Vault” in the new mint. The result was to completely jumble any old mint organization of silver dollars by date, and create a large mixed mountain of silver dollars.

When dollar coins began to be rolled out during implementation of the Pittman Act in spring 1918, no attention was paid to dates of bags or boxes. It is likely here, or during one of the smaller silver dollar meltings that the few 1895 silver dollars vanished.

The only 1895-P dollars with a chance of survival were the ten pieces sent to the Annual Assay Commission. Unused coins were routinely put into circulation through the Philadelphia Cashier’s office. There is no record of any 1895-P dollar being sent from the Philadelphia Mint for any other purpose except Special Assay on June 19, and those coins were always destroyed during testing.

I hope this lengthy comment will help collectors better understand the 1895 dollar situation and the likely fate of the coins.

Edited January 18, 2020 by RWB

[kbbpll]

I was blissfully unaware of the 1895-P $1 situation, and now I won't be able to sleep. They should make a heist movie out of it. Period costumes, mandolin music, bicycle craze, the works. I bet the Vault C workers did it. Then fast forward and a dozen of them are found in a safety deposit box, and the heist movie becomes a court drama.

[MarkFeld]

Roger, do you believe there’s any realistic possibility that the 12,000 coins in question could have actually been dated 1894?

Thanks.

[RWB]

1 hour ago, MarkFeld said:

Roger, do you believe there’s any realistic possibility that the 12,000 coins in question could have actually been dated 1894?

Thanks.

No. All records - and these are multiple routine US Mint documents - show the coins were struck June 28. They are properly accounted for in all respects. The silliness of "1894 date" got its start with an incompletely researched article appearing in Bowers & Merena's "Rare Coin Review." (That article is discussed in my 2006 CW piece.) The B&M article confusion turns on the fact that there were 13,000 dollar planchets left from 1894 production in the Coiner's bullion. These were used to make 12,000 good 1895 dollars (accounting for the usual misstruck and defective pieces) for which the Mint could book a quick profit. On a normal Fiscal Year cycle, everything was tracked in FY 1895.

A version of my 2006 article is included in the new book "Girl on the Silver Dollar" along with details on Pittman Act dollar melting.

Edited January 19, 2020 by RWB

[MarkFeld]

Thank you.

[RWB]

Most welcome !