Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States - A Complete Encyclopedia
Q. David Bowers
1904 Morgan Dollar
Numismatic Information
Hoard coins: Quantities of 1904 dollars dribbled onto the market in the 1941-1942 years, in the 1950s, and again in the early 1960s, but, apparently, there was no major release at any specific time. Quantity offerings by dealers were few and far between. The issue fell between the cracks, so to speak, and little attention was paid to it.
A very mediocre bag of 1904 dollars entered the market early in 1979; Wayne Miller examined nearly 300 pieces from the lot, found no gems, and noted this:
The dealer-owner pushed bid levels from less than $500 up to $2,000 but sold only a few coins at ever-larger discounts from bid. The bulk of the lot was finally disposed of at $250 per coin at the June 1980 Long Beach coin show to a large New England coin company.
Circulated grades: In worn grades the 1904 is relatively common, not among the most common Morgan dollars, however.
Mint State grades: In lower levels of Mint State the 1904 is plentiful. In MS-64 it is scarce, and at the MS-65 level it is rare. Estimates follow: MS-60 to 62, 60,000 to 120,000 coins; MS-63, 15,000 to 30,000; MS-64, 4,000 to 8,000; and MS-65, only 350 to 700.
The typically encountered 1904 dollar will win no awards for quality. Many have indifferent lustre, and the striking is apt to be average (even after allowing for the normal feathers on the C-4 reverse). The majority of pieces are in lower grade levels such as MS-60, 61, and 62.
There are, however, exceptions, and in the 1980s Bowers and Merena Galleries handled a group of several dozen beautifully toned MS-65 coins, well struck and lustrous, that had probably been obtained by application to the Mint in the time of issue. So far as I know, these have not been certified since. In full MS-65, sharply struck, the 1904 is among the most elusive dollars in the Morgan series.
Prooflike coins: The 1904 is very rare PL and extremely rare DMPL, but the contrast is poor, and many have dull gray surfaces. Because of this, the demand is not great. Certification service data (NGC and PCGS) as of September 1992: PL = 16. DMPL = 2. Most are in lower grades. Once again, I mention that these data represent just a tiny fraction of the extantpopulation. Furthermore, as time goes on, more and more pieces will be certified.
Proofs: Like Proofs of 1902 and 1903, those dated 1904 have little contrast as the high parts were struck from lightly polished, rather than frosty, dies. Just 650 were struck, the lowest mintage since 1881, when the same number were made.
In his sale of the Barnet, Mercer, Broadford, and Zolotzeff collections, May 2, 1931, Thomas L. Elder devoted Lots 540 through 551, 553 through 556, and 558 through 567 to Proof dollars dated 1904, an offering prefaced by this comment:
