Carson City Mint: History, Rare and Popular Coins

Perhaps the most storied and vaunted mint location in US history is the Carson City Mint. The mint, which produced American coinage between 1870 and 1893, is a symbol of both the Comstock Lode silver boom and the coincident era of the Wild West.

Because of these connections and its relatively short production run, the Carson City Mint’s coins are highly sought-after items within the numismatic community. If you show up to a coin shop or trade show with a coin bearing the “CC” mark, you are guaranteed to generate conversation.

Let’s look deeper at this historic mint, along with some of its most exemplary pieces.

Historical Overview of the Carson City Mint

Before we discuss the actual history of the Carson City Mint, it’s important to understand the historical position of the United States during this era.

Until 1848, the US Mint struggled to meet the coinage demands of the public because the young country had yet to discover a major source of gold or silver to backstop the value of its minted currency. However, the discovery of vast quantities of gold in California in January 1848 prompted the territory’s eponymous gold rush.

The resulting onslaught of fortune seekers from the East meant that previously untouched lands in the western United States suddenly experienced the touch of humans. Traveling miners moved through a canyon area located on the eastern slope of Mount Davidson, the tallest mountain in western Nevada’s Virginia Range, and happened to discover some placer gold from area quartz veins.

Although the amount of gold was sufficient to name the gorge Gold Canyon, gold-hungry miners nevertheless continued their trek westward in search of the richer veins of California. Ironically, Gold Canyon would yield the first major silver discovery in the US—the Comstock Lode—when two separate groups of miners and mineralogists discovered bluish-hued ore near the surface.

Between 1860 and 1880, the veins in the Comstock district would produce roughly 192 million ounces of silver (and 8.3 million ounces of gold). With so much new material on hand, the US Mint decided the logical place to establish a new mint location was in nearby Carson City, Nevada’s somewhat diminutive state capital.

Crews broke ground on the new facility in 1866. It was the first building designed by Alfred B. Mullett after his appointment as the Supervising Architect of the Department of the Treasury. Mullett also designed the San Francisco Mint building.

Mullett designed the building itself to be in the classic Renaissance Revival style. The facade of the building features pairs of round-top windows and a columned portico. In 1869, as the building’s construction neared completion, Mullett opined,

“After a personal inspection of this building…I believe it to be one of the most faithfully and economically constructed buildings in the United States.”

The man supervising the actual construction of the new mint building was no stranger to residents of the area. Abraham Curry, the man who founded Carson City itself, served as the crew’s supervisor and foreman.

Curry also became the facility’s first superintendent, although he was not in charge for much – if any – of the Carson City Mint’s actual production period. The mint did not begin producing coinage until 1870, the same year that Curry ceded the superintendent role to close colleague Henry Rice, who brought needed mining experience to the role.

For the next 23 years, the Carson City Mint would serve as one of the official locations designated to produce American coinage. Aside from a hiatus between 1885 and 1889, the mint came out with new issues each year.

However, the production from the Comstock began to wane after 1880, and made the Carson City Mint less economically feasible. Thus, the 1893 production run of the mint was the last issue from this hallowed location.

The mint’s closure did not spell the end for the building, though. The Treasury Department reopened it as an Assay Office only two years later, and it would serve in this capacity until 1933.

Then, in 1933, the State of Nevada purchased the mint building from the federal government for $10,000. The state made the building into the Nevada State Museum. It remains the repository for Nevadan history to the present day.

Rare Carson City Coins

Rarity is almost always associated with value in the coin-collecting world. Some rare coin specimens, like the 1933 $20 Double Eagle, have sold for millions of dollars in auction settings, and a few Carson City coins certainly fit this description.

Based upon the illustrious and near-mythical history of their production facility, it’s no surprise that Carson City coins are some of the most prized coins to collectors. They are literally products of the Comstock Lode and are tangentially related to the California Gold Rush.

In addition, they are all coincident with the Wild West era of the nation and very well may have played a part in it. The events of the Shootout at the OK Corral, Wyatt Earp, and Billy the Kid’s reign all took place only a few hundred miles to the south in Arizona and New Mexico, so it’s not a stretch to imagine that Carson City coins were part of the trade in those areas.

Finally, unlike the older Philadelphia and San Francisco Mints, which are still in operation to the present day, the Carson City Mint’s limited production years mean that its coinage, almost by definition, is more scarce and harder to find.

Thus, it’s no surprise that some of the rarest Carson City coins are some of the most valuable coins produced by the US Mint. Here are some of the standouts:

• 1873-CC “Without Arrows” Dime – The apex of the Carson City coins is this dime. Only one single specimen is known to exist. These coins were so named because they were minted during a transitional phase between one weight standard and another. The newer coins featured arrowhead designs to signify their change in weight, but the heavier arrowless coins were much rarer – none more so than this solitary Carson City dime.
• 1870-CC $20 Gold Double Eagle – Although silver discovery was the impetus for the Carson City Mint’s establishment, the mint produced several gold coin issues as part of its operations. None of these gold coins is more valued than the $20 gold Double Eagle that the CC Mint produced in its inaugural year of service. No more than four dozen of these coins remain in the current era, and even specimens found to be below Mint State can draw hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction.
• 1876-CC Twenty Cents – These coins were likely destined to be rare, no matter what became of the Carson City Mint itself. Only 10,000 of them were ever stamped, and most were deliberately melted down the following year at the behest of Henry R. Linderman, Director of the Mint. As we no longer use 20-cent pieces in circulation, their denomination also places them in a rare position. Of the 10,000, no more than 20 of these pieces are known to exist—and each one is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Related Articles: 1870 Liberty Head $20 Gold Coin – 1876 Liberty Head $20 Gold Coin  –

Most Popular Carson City Coins

Now, the coins listed above are not the only Carson City Mint coins on the market. Although CC coins are a niche within numismatics, there are several coins that are reasonably available and priced on the market. Here are some of the most popular Carson City coins for collectors.

Morgan Silver Dollars

One prominent coin that the Carson City Mint produced as one of its primary offerings was the Morgan silver dollar. Morgan dollars are iconic coin pieces that are familiar to almost every coin collector, and certain varieties and mintages of them can be quite valuable.

The most valuable Morgan dollar produced by the Carson City Mint is the 1889 edition of the coin. Its low overall mintage and its significance as the reintroduction of Carson City coinage after the four-year hiatus make it the biggest and most natural target for collectors. Even circulated versions sell for thousands of dollars, and mint state versions can draw six-figure valuations.

Other key dates in the Carson City Morgans include the 1879-CC (one of the lowest mintages and lowest rates of survival) and the 1893-CC (the last year of production, and many were melted down due to changes in government policy).

Now, one thing you may encounter as you invest in CC Morgans is a “GSA” designation. The GSA hoard was a massive stockpile of Morgan dollars discovered during the 1960s in the possession of the US government.

Of the nearly 3 million pieces discovered, the vast majority were from the Carson City Mint. In response, the US government (through the General Services Administration, from which the hoard draws its name) sold off these new discoveries at public auctions through the 1970s and early 1980s.

Thus, the GSA moniker is something of an informal designation of authenticity. However, as Morgan dollars may be the biggest target for counterfeiters, you should investigate the claims made about any potential CC Morgan you plan to purchase.

Here are the Morgan silver dollar mintage figures for all the years that the Carson City Mint produced them:

Seated Liberty Dollars and Other Denominations

Morgan dollars are the most popular coin series for Carson City collectors to acquire. However, there are several other prominent coin issues that are also favorites in the numismatic world. They include:

• Seated Liberty dollars et al – The Carson City Mint produced various denominations of coins using the Seated Liberty design for most of its initial decade of service. The dollar versions are the most popular for investors, but there are also dimes, quarters, half dollars, and the twenty-cent pieces.
• Half Eagles – Carson City did produce quantities of the gold coinage in use during its operating period. Of the group (which includes the Double Eagle), the Half Eagle is common enough to be relatively accessible to many collectors.
• Trade dollars – The CC Mint did produce some of the ill-fated trade dollars that the US government used to facilitate international transactions. Some of the specimens in this group are quite rare, as they were only produced for a short period and discontinued due to their limited popularity.

Carson City Mint Mark (“CC”) Significance

As discussed above, coins bearing the CC mint mark are certain to draw attention from coin collectors of all experience levels. Even newcomers to the hobby are quick to pick up on the meaning behind coins stamped as CCs.

So iconic is the CC mark that it has been the subject of several commemorative pieces as a privy mark. Notably, the US Mint released renditions of Morgan dollars in 2021 made of 99% silver, purer than the originals but in line with other commemorative releases.

There’s no question that the CC mark is iconic, and any CC-bearing coin in your collection is a centerpiece. However, as is true for Morgan dollars of all kinds, be sure to get any coin certified as genuine as a CC coin – it’s not difficult for scammers to fabricate the iconic mint mark.

How to Collect Carson City Coins

If you’re still reading, you’re likely interested in acquiring some Carson City coins for yourself. That’s great – they are certainly worthy portions of any coin collection.

However, with anything of value, the potential for counterfeiting and scamming is always there. So, whether you are trying to build sets of Carson City Mint coins or want to buy specific investment-grade pieces, here are some of the things you need to do:

• Establish a budget. It doesn’t matter if you plan to make CCs the focal point of your collection or you intend to dabble – you should figure out the financial commitment you want to make and stick to it. After all, there’s almost no limit to the amount of money you could spend on these coins.
• Shop around, both online and in person. Don’t just buy the first Carson City coins you encounter. Compare and contrast different offers, both online and in person. If you find two coins that are apples to apples – say, two Morgan dollars from non-key years in similar condition – you should investigate why one would be more expensive than the other.
• Value authenticity over price. While you should shop around, your primary objective should be to find authentic CC coins, not the best deal. Because these coins are common targets for counterfeiters, you should be quite wary about any deals that seem too good to be true. If you are purchasing one of the rarer coins in the group, it would be wise to require that it be graded by the PCGS or NGC, be officially sealed, and be discoverable in the grader’s archives.
• Investigate your dealer(s). As part of your qualification for any Carson City Mint purchase, you should take the time to research the seller of the coin(s). You should be extremely cautious and get an impartial second opinion if you are buying from a fellow investor or nonprofessional seller. However, even for sellers with extensive experience, you shouldn’t accept their deal without careful consideration.

Conclusion

Coins minted at the Carson City location are never going out of style for coin collectors and numismatists. The very real connections that each one has to American history are never going to be less meaningful or valuable as minor American treasures.

However, the constant demand for CCs means that you may encounter challenges in acquiring them, especially if you want one of the rarer ones. So, practice patience and diligence, as the last thing to do is get caught in a fraudulent scheme or pay too much for a piece.

If you have a Carson City Mint coin in your possession and you have questions about its authenticity, you can perform several different tests at home to get a rough idea about it. Authenticating your possession should be your top priority – particularly if you inherited the coins or received them by chance, rather than through a purposeful action.

Once you acquire a CC coin, be sure to employ proper procedures for storing it. In addition, it may not be a bad idea to have your coin graded by one of the services mentioned above. The rule of thumb, though, is that the cost of grading should likely be offset by the increase in value gained. So, if you have a run-of-the-mill Carson City coin (if such a thing exists), it might be sufficient to get the thumbs-up from a reputable coin dealer nearby.

JM Bullion does have a few genuine Carson City Mint coins available in its catalog. If you’re ready to begin your journey, simply click the link above to explore our selection.