Q. David Bowers
In The Numismatist, May 1930, F.C.C. Boyd offered the following run of Proof silver dollars. The highest price was assigned to the important 1895, followed by the speculative 1904, and the somewhat elusive 1878, although the variety of the latter was not given.
Boyd, an executive of the Union News Company, a nationwide operator of news and tobacco stands, made a salary of $25,000 per year during the Depression.' He was a coin collector and dealer at heart, however, and during the 1920s and'1930s was one of the most prominent advertisers in The Numismatist. Boyd's personal cabinet of American coins was sold as "The World's Greatest Collection" in 1945 and 1946 (see 1945 citation below).
1878 Proof $3.00.
1879 Proof $2.00.
1880 Proof $2.00.
1881 Proof $2.00.
1882 Proof $2.00.
1883 Proof $2.00.
1884 Proof $2.00.
1885 Proof $2.00.
1886 Proof $2.00.
1887 Proof $2.00.
1888 Proof $2.00.
1889 Proof $2.00.
1890 Proof $2.00.
1891 Proof $2.50.
1892 Proof $2.50.
1893 Proof $2.50.
1894 Proof $2.50.
1895 Proof $5.00.
1896 Proof $2.50.
1897 Proof $2.75.
1898 Proof $2.50.
1899 Proof $2.50.
1900 Proof $2.50.
1901 Proof $2.50.
1902 Proof $2.50.
1903 Proof $2.50.
1904 Proof $4.00.
B. Max Mehl's sale of the Foster Lardner and H.N. Walton Collections, June 24, 1930. Offered were various Morgan dollar issues. In the Mehl lexicon, "purple," as in purple surface, apparently meant "iridescent."
1879 Perfect Br. Proof $2.35.
1880 Br. Proof, sharp. $1.60.
1881 Sharp, Br. Proof $1. 75.
1881-S Small S. EF, with some lustre. $1.25.
1882 Br. Proof $1.75.
1883-S EF, nearly Urtc.$1.25.
1883 Br. Proof $1.75.
1884-O Unc. Scarce so choice. $1.45.
1884-S Fine. Scarce. $1.25.
1886 Br. Proof $1.85.
1887 Br. Proof $1.85.
1888 Br. Proof $1.85.
1889-O AU. $1.25.
1891-O Brilliant semi-proof. Scarce so choice. $1.40.
1892-O EF. $1.45.
1893 Brilliant purple Proof, with complete wire edge. $2.10.
1895 Br, Proof, sharp, with considerable wire edge. Rare in Proof $2.35.
1895-O Nearly Unc. $1.45.
1897-O Unc.; frosty mint surface. Scarce. $1.45.
1900 Br. Proof $1.75.
1902 Unc. $1.25.
1903 Perfect Br. Proof $1.75.
1904 Proof. Very scarce in Proof $2.50.
1904 Another as last. Proof; purple surface. $1.25.
1904-O VF. Scarce. $1.15.
B. Max Mehl's sale of the F.H. Knoop Collection, December 8, 1931. Apparently, Mehl was trying to tell his readers that the 1895 is rare as a date. Proof 1895 dollars on their own were and are no more limited in number than other Proofs of the era.
1879 Proof $2.00.
1880 Proof $2.00.
1883 Proof $2.00.
1884 Proof $2.00.
1885 Proof; slightly tarnished. $2.00.
1895 Proof. Scarce. A limited number of Proofs struck. $3.25.
1900 Proof $2.00.
1904 AU. $1.50.
1921 Unc. $1.35.
1921 EF. $1.35.
John Zug advertised these Morgan dollars in the August 1933 issue of The Numismatist. All things considered, the value of Proof Liberty Seated, Morgan, and trade dollars held quite well in the depth of the Depression. Of course, prices were not high to begin with. Unlike many other areas of collecting (such as rare books, prints, manuscripts, and art), coins did not experience a great inflation in the late 1920s, so there was no height from which to fall.
1879 Proof $2.00.
1880 Proof $2.00.
1881 Proof $2.00.
1882 Proof $2.00.
1883 Proof $2.00.
1884 Proof $2.00.
1885 Proof $2.00.
1887 Proof $2.00.
1888 Proof $2.00.
1889 Proof $2.00.
1890 Proof $2.00.
1891 Proof $2.00.
1892 Proof $2.00.
1894 Proof $2.00.
1895 Proof $3.50.
1899 Proof $2.00.
1900 Proof $2.00.
1901 Proof $2.00.
1902 Proof $2.00.
1903 Proof $2.00.
1903-O Fine $12.50.
1904 Proof $3.50.