1882-CC $1 Morgan Silver Dollar PCGS MS65

Carson City Morgan dollars are greatly desired by collectors, especially pristine Gem examples. Here’s one in MS65 that definitely won’t break the bank. PCGS has graded 6,069 as MS65 with 2,186 finer. Collectors Universe prices this issue at $725.00.

Sitting Bull and Buffalo Bill in 1885. It is more than likely that Chief Sitting Bull and Buffalo Bill spent silver dollars carrying the "CC" mintmark throughout the West when they were traveling with Buffalo Bill's Wild West show. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

There is much western lore associated with Carson City Morgan dollars. Did Wyatt Earp have silver dollars in his pocket when he stopped by the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, in 1881? It is quite possible. Did "Buffalo Bill" Cody, Billy "the Kid," Chief Sitting Bull, or Annie Oakley pay for drinks, provisions, or clothing in the Rockies during the late 1800s? If so, the distinctive clang of a silver dollar was heard as it was dropped onto a wooden bar or store counter.

The smell of whiskey hung in the air as stacks of Morgan dollars sat upon the gaming tables in smoke-filled rooms of Rhyolite, Tincup, Silver Reef and other gambling towns that dotted the Wild West. In banks, bordellos, and bistros in Helena, Cheyenne, and Denver, clerks handled silver dollars every day.  Many dollars that changed hands in those days carried the "CC" mintmark of Carson City.