1795 $1 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar NGC MS62

Here's a great rarity from the early days of our nation. Out of an original mintage of 160,295 there are perhaps 5,000 pieces available to collectors today. The dearth of specimens today is because the bulk of our early silver dollars were shipped off to the Orient to compete with the Spanish Carolus dollars in trade. However, Chinese merchants did not trust U.S. dollars, and the bulk of them ended up being melted down and converted into Chinese forms of bullion called Sycee.

NGC has graded 16 as MS62, with 18 finer. Original deep golden brown patina adorns both sides of this classic numismatic piece. Ron Guth writes, "The Flowing Hair design appeared on the first United States Silver Dollars in 1794, but only lasted until sometime in 1795, when it was replaced with the Draped Bust design. The 1794 Silver Dollar is a rare coin, represented by approximately 150-200 survivors. The 1795 Silver Dollar is much more common, but the demand from type collectors keeps the prices high."

Mint director David Rittenhouse, who conspired with Mint assayer Albion Cox to change the fineness of the Flowing Hair silver dollars without advising Congress or the President.

Controversy surrounding production of the Flowing Hair silver dollars (1794-1795)

Mint assayer Albion Cox found the statuary fineness of .89243 difficult to realize when production began on the Flowing Hair silver dollars. Cox proposed maintaining the 371.25 grains of silver, however with lowering the copper content to 41 grains of copper (from 44.75 grains), thus resulting in a 412.25 grain silver dollar of .900456 fine silver. In response to Cox's suggestion, Mint Director David Rittenhouse proposed the following:  to increase the silver content from 371.25 to 374.75, resulting in a total coin weight of 416 grains at .90084 silver fineness. Even though this plan was not authorized by Congress, and in fact was actually hidden from Congress and the President, for over a year the Mint coined silver in this manner at this unlawful ratio.

This new standard was used to strike all 1,758 of the 1794 Flowing Hair silver dollars and all 203,033 of the 1795 (both Flowing Hair type and Draped Bust type) silver dollars. Don Taxay writes, "The most immediate effect of this practice was that depositors of silver had to pay an additional 2-1/2 grains bullion (about 1 percent extra) for every dollar they received." John Vaughn was a friend of President Washington and a large depositor at the Mint. Due to that unorthodox, unlawful practice he lost $2,260, and petitioned Congress for its reimbursement. It took from 1795 until February of 1800 for Congress to finally pay Vaughan for his losses.