Collectors Guide to Morgan Silver Dollars - Littleton Coin Company

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The Morgan SilverDollar Hoards22The Redfield HoardLaVere Redfield was a “hard money” fanatic whohated the government and refused to pay taxes.After moving to Reno, Nevada in the 1930s withsome money he had made through oil and stockinvestments, Redfield, a wildly eccentric character,enjoyed looking the part of a poor farmer and wasgenerally considered a cheapskate. But Redfieldwas inconsistent. He would hitchhike to save gasbut would gamble away thousands of silver dollarsat Reno casinos!Redfield was not a coin collector. He did,however, have a unique interest in Morgan silverdollars. Friends at local banks would let him knowwhen they had bags of silver dollars, usuallyMorgans. Redfield would go to thebank and buy these silver dollars,paying astonishing amounts of papermoney for them.When he brought the coins home,there was no exciting digging throughthe bags, searching for conditions orkey date coins, or proudly displayingalbums of beautiful Morgans. Instead,Redfield often dropped the bags ofsilver dollars down a coal chute to bestored in his cellar. Redfield amassedmore than 500,000 silver dollars over LaVere Redfield was an eccentricthree decades.who liked to make people believeAfter Redfield’s death in 1974, a he was a poor farmer. Actually, hecomplete inventory of his estate was was very wealthy and hoardedtaken. Between 520,000 and 650,000 silver dollars in his cellar. Aftersilver dollars were found, dwarfing any his death in 1974, Redfield’sprevious hoard! A judge decreed that hoard of Morgan silver dollarsthe best way to settle Redfield’s estate was purchased by A-Markwas to hold an auction for the coins. Coin Company for $7,300,000!When it was over, the A-Mark Coin Curiosity about Redfield and hisCompany became the new owner of hoard generated much publicthe Redfield Hoard for $7.3 million! interest in Morgan silver dollars.An exact inventory of the hoard hasnever been released and details of the purchase are to this day vague.Morgan silver dollars were also part of two other hoards, each with strikingparallels to the Redfield Hoard.
The Reno Casino HoardRudy, like Redfield, lived inNevada and worked in a casino.He especially liked Morgans fromthe Carson City, Nevada Mint. Ashe spotted them among the coinshe handled daily, Rudy savedthem, and traded his own moneyfor these silver coins.As Morgans grew scarcer incasino change, Rudy began savingevery silver dollar he could find.After his retirement, his hoardtotalled more than 4,100 silverdollars – including 3,312 Morgans!The VermontYankee HoardRudy had the chance to set asideover 3,000 Morgan silver dollars whileworking in a Reno casino.Alexander and Imogene Miller lived on the other side of the country, but hadthe same love for Morgan dollars. The couple appeared to be poor. Alexanderstill rode his 1903 bicycle to town and Imogene wore plastic bags for araincoat. Yet, what was found after their deaths in and under the variousoutbuildings of their Vermont farm amazed everyone. A fortune – estimatedat $3,000,000 – in luxury antique cars, gold bars, silver ingots, stocks, highdenominationFederal Reserve Notes and more – the Millers’ cache wasincredible! Tucked away in old cigar boxes and nondescript wrappers weredozens of Morgan dollars, some still in Choice Uncirculated condition,despite having been buried for years.Buried under the floorboards of outbuildings in a Vermont farmhousewas a fortune in gold, silver and antiques.23
Page 1 and 2: LITTLETON’S$4.95COLLECTORS GUIDE
Page 3 and 4: Collecting is a way to make time st
Page 5 and 6: What became of the partners?Despite
Page 7 and 8: The American Eagle on the reverse o
Page 9 and 10: The New Orleans MintThe U.S. branch
Page 11 and 12: The Morgan Silver DollarDate: 1878
Page 13 and 14: of silver dollars stored in Treasur
Page 15 and 16: California Street, looking west tow
Page 17: The Mint at Carson Citywas nothing
Page 21: Some homesteaders constructed their
Page 25 and 26: The History ofLittleton Coin Compan
Page 27 and 28: Caring for Your CoinsProper handlin

Collectors Guide to Morgan Silver Dollars - Littleton Coin Company

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