The GSA Hoard was a massive stockpile of Morgan silver dollars found in U.S. Treasury vaults in the 1960s. These coins were predominantly produced by the Carson City Mint and stored for decades before their eventual sale to the public by the General Services Administration (GSA) through a series of sales from 1972 to 1980. The discovery and sale of these coins had profoundly impacted the coin market and significantly elevated the status of Carson City silver dollars among collectors. Compared to other silver dollar hoards like the LaVere Redfield hoard, which held about 400,000 silver dollars, the GSA hoard held nearly 3 million silver dollars!
Furthermore, the GSA hoard differs from other hoards, like the Saddle Ridge hoard, in that it was held by the U.S. government and not buried in a secret location by an individual.
Origins and Discovery of the GSA Hoard
Before the hoard was uncovered, Morgan dollars from the Carson City mint were thought to be scarce. The U.S. Mint office at Carson City was operational from 1870 to 1893 and produced fewer Morgan silver dollars than the other U.S. mints. Many Carson City Morgan dollars were thought to have been melted down following the Pittman Act of 1918, but that was not the case, as members of the Treasury Department learned in the 1960s. The hoard was discovered after the U.S. Treasury suspended the redemption of silver certificates for silver dollars in 1964. Upon reviewing its remaining stock, the Treasury found about 3 million silver dollars, of which nearly 2.5 million were Carson City Morgans.
This discovery was monumental and revealed that many previously rare dates were, in fact, much more common than originally thought. For example, the 1884-CC, once considered a rare coin, was found in quantities exceeding 962,000, making it the most common of the Carson City silver dollars. Conversely, the 1890-CC, despite having a large mintage of over 2.3 million, had only 3,950 coins in the hoard, making it one of the more valuable coins encapsulated by the GSA.
Altogether, there were close to 3 million Carson City Morgan silver dollars and less than 30,000 Morgan and Peace silver dollars from other U.S. Mints found.
List of GSA Morgan Dollars
| Date | Original Mintage | GSA Hoard Total |
| 1878-CC | 2,212,000 | 60,993 |
| 1879-CC | 756,000 | 4,123 |
| 1880-CC | 591,000 | 131,529 |
| 1881-CC | 296,000 | 147,485 |
| 1882-CC | 1,133,000 | 605,029 |
| 1883-CC | 1,204,000 | 755,518 |
| 1884-CC | 1,136,000 | 962,638 |
| 1885-CC | 228,000 | 148,285 |
| 1889-CC | 350,000 | 1 |
| 1890-CC | 2,309,041 | 3,949 |
| 1891-CC | 1,618,000 | 5,687 |
| 1892-CC | 1,352,000 | 1 |
| 1893-CC | 677,000 | 1 |
The GSA Sales
The U.S. government turned to the General Services Administration (GSA) to sell the coins. The GSA is an independent agency tasked with managing federal property and providing services and supplies to government agencies in the United States.
In 1970, Congress authorized the GSA to sell the hoard to the public, and The Great Silver Sale took place on October 31, 1972, coinciding with Nevada’s statehood anniversary. The initial sale offered 1.7 million Carson City Morgan dollars, with minimum bids starting at $30 per coin. While The Great Silver Sale sold 700,000 coins, subsequent sales were less successful. The GSA held several more, including “The Coins Jesse James Never Got” and “The Last of a Legacy” sales to distribute the remaining silver dollars. In total, the GSA sold nearly 2.9 million silver dollars through seven sales and earned a gross of $100 million.
The GSA Hoard’s Impact on the Market
The release of the GSA Hoard had a significant effect on the numismatic market, particularly for Carson City silver dollars. Before the hoard was found, many Carson City Morgans were considered rare and commanded high premiums. However, as millions of these coins entered the market, prices for certain dates, such as the 1882-CC, 1883-CC, and 1884-CC, fell. Had the U.S. Treasury Department had melted these coins instead of selling them, many Carson City Mint Morgan dollars would have greater rarity today. The
The discovery of the GSA Hoard also sparked a surge in interest in Carson City coins. The GSA sales brought the history of the Carson City Mint to the forefront, and collecting these coins in their original GSA packaging became highly desirable among collectors.
GSA Holders and Certification
One of the unique aspects of the GSA Hoard is the packaging used to hold the coins. Carson City silver dollars sold by the GSA were encapsulated in special plastic holders with the designation “Carson City Uncirculated Silver Dollar.” These coins were also accompanied by a certificate of authenticity (COA) and housed in a black box with a velvet lining. However, not all of the coins were uncirculated; some showed wear or had unsightly toning, and these were encapsulated without the uncirculated designation.
Today, GSA Morgan dollars are highly collectible, mainly when they are still in their original GSA holders. In recent years, third-party grading services like PCGS and NGC have offered certification of GSA dollars while keeping the coins in their original government holders. NGC even developed a special “banded” holder that wraps around the original case, allowing collectors to preserve the historic packaging while having their coins professionally graded. Coins from key dates like 1879-CC, 1890-CC, and 1891-CC trade at significant premiums, especially when they include the original COA.
The value of GSA Carson City silver dollars varies based on the coin’s date, condition, and whether it is still in the original GSA holder with the COA. Coins that retain their original GSA holders and COAs typically trade at a premium over those that have been removed from their packaging.
