Q. David Bowers
Delivery Dates
Had dollar-minting operations been in normal order at the Mint, it would be logical to assume today that the earlier dies-PI Portrait obverses and WI Wreath reverses-would have been used first, followed by the PII Portrait and WII Wreath dies. However, after the initial delivery of 1794 dollars on October 17, 1794, dollar production was suspended, as it was felt that a larger press was needed. On October 28, 1794, Director David Rittenhouse wrote to Secretary of State Edward Randolph stating, in part: "A large parcel of blank dollars is ready for coining, waiting for a more powerful press to be finished, in order to complete them for currency." Obviously, it was intended that these blank planchets be coined into 1794-dated dollars, but as the striking of 1794 dollars had not been completely satisfactory (the coins were weak on the left side of the obverse and corresponding part of the reverse), and the dies had been damaged by clashing and relapping, it was deemed best to wait. In the meantime, large quantities of silver half dollars were struck.
Collectors of half dollars can be grateful that the Mint had no suitable press for silver dollars, for in the absence of dollar coinage from October 1794 through May 1795, deliveries of half dollars were frequent and massive. Depositors of silver bullion could not obtain silver dollars. Thus, they were given specimens of the largest silver denomination available, half dollars. Once silver dollar production resumed with vigor in May 1795, half dollar deliveries diminished. The last half dollar delivery of the year was on June 5, 1795, after which no half dollars were delivered until 1797 (in which year 1796- and 1797- dated halves were paid out). On the other hand, if the Mint had not obtained a suitable silver dollar press until 1798, then today 1796 and 1797 halves would be common! It is interesting how a single event, such as the availability of a coin press, dramatically affected the production and relationship of silver dollar dies of 1795, the quantities of half dollars produced late 1795 through 1797, and other situations.
By May 6, 1795, a large press was in working order, silver dollars had been struck, and a delivery of 3,810 silver dollars took place. Presumably, in the more than half year that elapsed since the last delivery of dollars on October 15, 1794, many new silver dollar obverse (dated 1795) and reverse dies had been created, probably including all three of the known PI (Head of 1794) obverses and many of the WI style reverses (but not the two known WII reverses).
When completed, these dies were coated with grease (to protect against rusting) and put in the die chest or vault, awaiting call for their use. When that call came in May 1795, the earliest dies made were not necessarily the earliest dies used. The business strike mintages of the calendar year 1795 are given below, per the research of R.W. Julian.
In addition, in italic type, delivery dates for $10 gold coins are given. If the same large press was employed for minting this denomination, the coinage for these deliveries would have interrupted the production of silver dollars and would have necessitated the removal of the dollar dies from the press. (Probably, half dollars were made on a smaller press-as evidenced by multiple deliveries of half dollars early in 1795, before the large-size press for dollars was installed. It may be that $10 pieces, about the diameter of a half dollar and in slightly softer alloy, were coined on a smaller press as well.)
Business strike mintage (combined for all 1795 dollars, Flowing Hair and Draped Bust types): 203,033 (not including pieces reserved for the Assay Commission; these are additional and are given in parentheses); Delivery figures by day:
May 6: 3,810 First delivery of silver dollars since the one and only 1794 dollar delivery on October 15, 1794. By now, a new, larger press had been installed specifically to make silver dollars.
May 6: 3,810 First delivery of silver dollars since the one and only 1794 dollar delivery on October 15, 1794. By now, a new, larger press had been installed specifically to make silver dollars.
May 16: 15,268 (+3 for Assay Commission)
June 5: 10,917 (+3)
June 5 (same day): 10,430 (+2) In June, Mint Director David Rittenhouse resigned, and William DeSaussure took his place.
June 17: 10,000 (+3)
June 20: 5,986 (+3)
June 26: 6,000 (+3)
June 29: 4,000 (+3)
July 2: 5,243 (+3)
July 9: 5,000 (+3)
July 13: 7,000 (+3)
July 17: 4,500 (+3)
July 21: 6,000 (+3)
July 23: 4,876 (+3)
July 30: 1,184 (+3)
July 31: Delivery of $10 eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
August 10: 3,500 (+3)
August 11 through August 21; multiple deliveries of eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
August 22: 4,385 (+3)
August 29: 6,500 (+3)
August 31: 1,106 (+3)
September 1: 830 (+3) New WII wreath may have been introduced about this time; in the meantime, WI wreaths continued to be used on extant dies.
September 1: Delivery of $10 eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
September 12: 4,260 (+3)
September 22,24: Deliveries of $10 eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
September 24: 4,000 (+3)
October 3: 15,000 (+3) New Draped Bust/Small Eagle design may have been introduced about this time.
October 7:6,000 (+3) October 10: 14,500 (+3)
October 10: Delivery of $10 eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
October 17:23,368 (+3)
October 22: Delivery of $10 eagles. Silver dollar coinage interrupted.
October 24: 19,370 (+3).
October .27: Resignation dale of Mint Director. DeSaussure; no more silver dollars minted this calendar year.
November 27: Delivery of $10 eagles.