1870-S G$1 MS65 PCGS. CAC....

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Sold on Aug 12, 2015 for:

$37,600.00 Bid Source: Live: Floor bidder

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1870-S Gold Dollar, MS65
Final Branch Mint Gold Dollar

1870-S G$1 MS65 PCGS. CAC. Housed in a green-label PCGS holder. A glass is required to see the trivial, grade-consistent marks of this piece. Wisps of turquoise toning appear on the satiny yellow-gold surfaces of this impressive Gem, representing the final gold dollar issue of the San Francisco Mint.

Variety and Die State: Breen-6085. Normal Dies. Mostly vertical die polishing lines are evident on the reverse.

Population (6/15): The finest at PCGS are three in MS65 and one each in MS65+ and MS66. Three examples in MS65 are the finest at NGC.

Commentary: Four branch mints -- Charlotte, Dahlonega, New Orleans, and San Francisco -- struck gold dollars between 1849 and 1870. The balance of the series from 1871 to 1889 was minted solely in Philadelphia, illustrating the lack of demand for these coins in the South and West. The Charlotte Mint struck gold dollars from 1849 to 1853, and in 1855, 1857, and 1859. Dahlonega struck the denomination each year from 1849 through 1861. New Orleans produced gold dollars from 1849 through 1853, and in 1855. San Francisco struck examples in 1854, 1856 through 1860, and again in 1870. Meanwhile, Philadelphia had an uninterrupted run of gold dollar production from 1849 through 1889.

Douglas Winter Commentary: The 1870-S is numismatically significant as the final gold dollar struck at this mint. This date is seldom seen in grades below AU, indicating that it did not see wide circulation. It is available in the lower Uncirculated grades and even in MS63 to MS64 from time to time, but Gems are very rare with an estimated three to five known.

This pleasing Gem is possibly the best of the small number of MS65s known and it was originally part of an Alaska collector's amazing 1870 year set that was sold by Heritage in 2014. When Steve got wind of this coin becoming available, he negotiated a deal to purchase it via private treaty.

The likely finest known 1870-S gold dollar is ex: Heritage February 2002, lot 6692, MS66 PCGS. It failed to meet its reserve and went unsold; I am uncertain what became of it. The last auction record for an MS65 PCGS example is lot 10089 in the July 2003 Heritage sale at $16,100, a price that seems pretty cheap by today's standards.

Provenance: Unrecorded.

The San Francisco Mint in 1870: Gold was discovered in California in 1848, and the famous Gold Rush soon began. One result of the California Gold Rush was statehood for California in 1850, becoming just the fifth state west of the Mississippi River. Another result was the establishment of a long-awaited, long-delayed U.S. branch mint in San Francisco. Congress authorized the San Francisco Mint on July 3, 1852, and coinage began in 1854.

Mint operations were primarily centered on silver coins of various denominations and larger gold coins. The gold dollars were sporadically produced in limited quantities, and 1870 was the last production of the denomination. Unlike the other branch mints, the San Francisco Mint was far enough away from Civil War activities that it continued to produce coinage throughout the conflict and beyond.

In the early 1870s, the California mint was outgrowing its small physical plant, and a new Mint building was soon under construction, opening in 1874 and continuing in operation until 1937. Mr. A.H. LaGrange was Superintendent of the San Francisco Mint from August 1, 1869 until December 31, 1877.
From The Duckor Family Collection of Gold Dollars.(Registry values: N7079)

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 25D7, PCGS# 7570, Greysheet# 8087)

Weight: 1.67 grams

Metal: 90% Gold, 10% Copper

View all of [The Duckor Family Collection of Gold Dollars ]

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