FLOWING HAIR SILVER DOLLARS (1794-1795)
FLOWING HAIR SILVER DOLLARS (1794-1795)
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1794 Mintage 1,758
1795 2 leaves, Head of 94' Mintage 203,033
1795 3 leaves, Head of 95' Mintage Included above

FLOWING HAIR DOLLAR FACTS:

The best source of information on this date is the book "The Flowing Hair Silver Dollars of 1794 - An Historical and Population Census Study" by Martin A. Logies.  Mr. Logies documented the appearances of over 125 different 1794 Silver Dollars along with their auction pedigrees and other pertinent information.  This information is crucial to anyone contemplating the purchase of a 1794 Silver Dollar, since many of the coins are impaired and/or or repaired.

A single pair of dies accounts for all known examples of this date.  Many examples show adjustment marks on one or both sides, where excess metal was filed from the planchet before striking.

Two copper patterns exist of this date, both unique.  The first pattern shows all of the design elements except for the obverse stars (Judd 18). The second (Judd 19) is a well-struck die trial (presently in the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution).  Judd 18 and Judd 19 have different obverse dies, but share a common reverse.  Both the obverse and reverse dies of Judd 19 were later used to make the regular 1794 Silver Dollars.

The Flowing Hair design appeared on the first United States Silver Dollars in 1794, but only lasted until sometime in 1795, when it was replaced with the Draped Bust design. coinfacts.com

The Flowing Hair, Small Eagle design was the first struck on silver coinage after the opening of First Philadelphia Mint in 1793. It was struck on half dimes, half dollars, and silver dollars, dated 1794 and 1795. The one and only 1794 dollar delivery was on October 15, 1794, and it can be presumed that the coins were struck earlier the same month. Q. David Bowers, in his 1993 silver dollar encyclopedia, suggests that the first Draped Bust dollars were delivered in October 1795. Thus, the Flowing Hair type lasted only a single year, and since it is the introductory silver dollar type, its historical importance is unquestioned.

The Flowing Hair obverse was undoubtedly based on the contemporary half cent and large cent. The Liberty cap was removed, perhaps due to its association with the increasingly radical French revolution. This left a youthful bust of Liberty facing right with unbound hair.

The reverse design also has similarities to the 1794 half cent and large cent, since those denominations display a nearly closed wreath and the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA along the border. The Act of April 2, 1792, which established the U.S. Mint, also indicated that silver and gold coins were to display an eagle on the reverse. The eagle displaced the central area occupied by the denomination on the half cent and cent. For the silver dollar, the denomination is only noted on the edge, which states HUNDRED CENTS ONE DOLLAR OR UNIT. This continued the tradition of Mother England, which omitted a denomination on silver and gold coins. No denomination was necessary since the bullion value and implied face value were intended to be equivalent. Info from HA.com

SPECIFICATIONS:
Designer: Robert Scot

Diameter: 39-40 millimeters

Metal content:
Silver - 90%
Copper - 10%

Weight: 416 grains (27.0 grams)

Edge: Lettered - HUNDRED CENTS ONE DOLLAR OR UNIT (various ornaments between words)

Mint mark: None (all dates of this type were struck at Philadelphia)

1794 Flowing Hair Small Eagle Image
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