1877-CC Trade Dollar October 31st Coin of The Week

Although I have yet to own one, Trade Dollars have always interested me.
Carson City minted 534,000 Trade Dollars which was an increase of 25,000 over the previous years production. 1877-CC are not rare however high grade specimens are tough to locate. Trade Dollars were primarily intended to circulate in the Orient and any 1877-CC Trade Dollar with original chop marks are scarce.
Some notables of history in 1877
On March 24th 1877 Rutherford B. Hayes was sworn in as President of the United States, voted in by commission over Samuel Tilden, who had actually won the popular vote.
The first Bell Telephone was sold in May of 1877 and by August 1877 778 instruments were in use.
Chase National Bank was founded September 12th which later became Chase Manhattan Bank.
Survival estimates in all grades from The Mint on Carson Street state there are 500-1000 1877-CC's
Estimates in Uncirculated 75-100
Estimates in XF to AU 250-400
Total Certified in all grades ( PCGS and NGC) 159 as of July 2003
In 1877 it was a common sight to see ads in the Carson Daily Appeal and the Territorial Enterprise that "Trade Dollars Will Be Discounted" and in storefronts signs " Trade Dollars Not Accepted"
1877-CC Trade Dollars represent a great value for collectors and problem free examples bring more that current listed prices in the guides. There are also two sizes of mint marks known for this date Medium and Large ( Tall ) and all known examples were struck using the Type II obverse and reverse dies.
As I stated in the beginning of my article I have yet to acquire a Trade Dollar for my CC type set but a serious consideration to add this date to my set will have me scouring the bourse floor for a problem free example.

It is interesting that not long ago, chop marks were treated as damage by the TPG's. Now they are much more accepted for their historic value. Very nice article on Trade Dollars, Mark.

Mark,

Welcome to the Carson City Coin of the Week project.

I wish you good luck in finding just the right "CC" Trade dollar for your collection.

Rusty

Loosechange,

Nice article with very interesting facts. I too find the Trade Dollar extremely interesting. The coin had many limitations to its use within the countrys daily commerce which made it quite different than any other US coin ever minted. Some of the coins "legal tender" limitations caused confusion and quite a bit of missuse. For instance, the coin could legally be used to acquire $10,000.00 of silk in trade with China, but could not be used to buy $6.00 worth of groceries. Congress limited the Trade Dollars legal tender status within the US to transactions of $5.00 or less.

There were also times when the coins legal tender status changed and eventually its legal use was revoked. I do not recall all of the details and dates of these changes just now. Perhaps one of our readers will amplify on this topic?



Due to the country's very slow, and sometimes non-existant, lines of communications, very few people knew much about the limitations of the Trade Dollar. Some unscrupulous employers used the coin to pay workers their wages, yet the coins many limitations did not provide 100% dollar for dollar wage value.

The history of the trade dollar is fascinating. Thanks again for participating in our Carson City Coin of the Week program.

Belay Off

Hi Belay, Loosechange and "CC" fans the world 'round

First of all; CONGRATS TO YOU LOOSECHANGE FOR YOUR COW POST OF THE 1877-CC TRADE DOLLAR.

Second; Sorry I'm so late folks...I've experienced yet another computer crash...ugh! I must break down and simply get a new one. I'm on a slow borrowed one for the moment...difficult!

Third; I must thank you Belay for providing a beautiful picture of (I presume) your 1877-CC TR $ specimen....superb looking coin to say the least!

I just finished (re)reading Rusty Goe's article "How Monetary Policies Influenced Coinage Production at the Carson City Mint from 1875 to 1877" in the Fall-Winter 2010 issue of the Curry's Chronicle

Rusty's article goes one heck of a long way towards explaining the how's, why's and who's responsible for the birth of the U.S. trade dollar. His fab article is a mini-book within itself concerning this fascinating subject. Basically, it was politics that brought about this most unpopular dollar (of its day). We collectors are sure happy about it now though! Most of my non-collector friends that I show one of my "CC" trade dollars to have never seen one before. "Are they real?" they ask....."They sure are" I reply. The article is simply a must-read for everyone who loves and appreciates "CC" lore.

Aren't we coin collectors lucky to have a club publication like Currys?
Where else would we find such information all in one place?
Thank you Rusty, Marie and all yous guys at Southgate!

A wonderful article on yet another special "CC" coin!

Michael the drummer

Hello everybody!! I want to thank you Belay for posting that picture for the coin of the week. I definately need some help on picture posting. One thing for sure about this great club is all the help and knowledge that you get from all of our super membership.

Loosechange