Where did the all the pre-64 silver go?

[longbow62]

What did the U.S. Mint do with the silver coins pulled from circulation after 1964. Were the majority melted into bricks and put in government vaults? It seems like it would have been a tremendous amount of silver, and hence dollar value. You hear about the Fort Knox gold, but nothing about the government holding silver.

 

[cellrdwellr]

Pretty sure @KingTotsalot has most of it

 

[KingTotsalot]

Pretty sure @KingTotsalot has most of it

HA HA HA! When silver hit $40 an ounce, when the Hunt Brothers tried to capture the silver market, many silver hoarders sold their silver at around 22 times face value to buyers that came to shows and even advertised in local newspapers that they would be in a certain motel or hotel for a day buying. This took place all over the USA. I personally took a cigar box of silver coinage that my Uncle had and sold it for him. He was amazed at the amount of cash I brought him.

There never has been a US Government silver buy back. There was for gold coins when we went off the gold standard back in the late 20s - early 30s. We went off the silver standard in the 1960s and that is when the US Mint started making clad coinage. What is it backed by now? The US Reserve, another government entity!

KT does have a hoard of silver halves and a few other silver coins, like dimes, some war nickels, etc, and a couple of rolls of quarters, but mostly silver is still being hoarded by older folks as a hedge against inflation. Silver prices per troy ounce is controlled by the world market, mine production, and industrial uses. Some is recycled, but not much. Very little is used in coinage anymore, just special issues from the US Mint, mostly. Silver is used in inexpensive jewelry for rings, pendant mounts, chains, etc, just like gold but way cheaper. The price has slowly been easing up in the past year, just like the price of food and other goods. KT is not an economist, so He does not know if the precious metals markets are keeping in step with inflation or not.

Another bit of history: When the US Government announced the end of silver coinage, then almost everyone in business became a silver hoarder! Any silver coins that came in in change, were bought up by either the business owner or the employees. Those were many of the hoards that were sold when silver hit $40 per ounce.

 

[amc rulz]

Supposedly about 20% of silver coin was pulled by the fed in 1968-69 when they ended the silver certificate program. Then in 1979-80, more was melted during the Hunt Brothers fiasco, supposedly a lot of their silver was in coin form and the refineries were severely backlogged. Then the price tanked. It’s said that much of the late 60’s silver coin ended up in art bars of the time.

 

[KingTotsalot]

Supposedly about 20% of silver coin was pulled by the fed in 1968-69 when they ended the silver certificate program. Then in 1979-80, more was melted during the Hunt Brothers fiasco, supposedly a lot of their silver was in coin form and the refineries were severely backlogged. Then the price tanked. It’s said that much of the late 60’s silver coin ended up in art bars of the time.

Thanks for that added info, amc rulz! I know at the time of the ending of the silver certificate program, one could turn in those bills and received granular silver in exchange with the US Mint! My father had a friend that did that with a few hundred paper dollars and he got a heavy box in return. I got to look inside that box at the granules, sealed up in thick plastic bags!

 

[longbow62]

I was to young to remember any of this, but I'm not sure the average guy on the street knew they even made the switch to clad. I just figured the banks were ask to turn return silver coins in exchange for clad coins. Most folks today don't seem to realize pre-65 coins were 90% silver. I wonder how many people back then even knew coins were actually silver. Or for that matter even cared.

 

[amc rulz]

It was a pretty big deal at the time, first fundamental change for US coinage in 173 years. I was only three at the time but I remember in the early 1970’s a few of my friends showed me jars of mercs, silver quarters etc that their folks had stashed away. Apparently hoarding silver coin was a thing back then.

President Johnson in 1965 said, “If anybody has any idea of hoarding our silver coins, let me say this. Treasury has a lot of silver on hand, and it can be, and it will be used to keep the price of silver in line with its value in our present silver coin. There will be no profit in holding them out of circulation for the value of their silver content.”

Remarks at the Signing of the Coinage Act | The American Presidency Project

www.presidency.ucsb.edu

 

[KingTotsalot]

It was a pretty big deal at the time, first fundamental change for US coinage in 173 years. I was only three at the time but I remember in the early 1970’s a few of my friends showed me jars of mercs, silver quarters etc that their folks had stashed away. Apparently hoarding silver coin was a thing back then.

President Johnson in 1965 said, “If anybody has any idea of hoarding our silver coins, let me say this. Treasury has a lot of silver on hand, and it can be, and it will be used to keep the price of silver in line with its value in our present silver coin. There will be no profit in holding them out of circulation for the value of their silver content.”

Remarks at the Signing of the Coinage Act | The American Presidency Project

www.presidency.ucsb.edu

Ha ha, once we went off the silver standard, the price of silver as well as gold was then based on world market value. LBJ was no pm expert and definitely no economist. Just shows what happens when people talk about things of which they know nothing.

 

[hoser]

I do remember when the first clad coinage came out. At the time a lot of people thought it was rather cool. I wish I knew then what I know now.

 

[sube]

It was a pretty big deal at the time, first fundamental change for US coinage in 173 years. I was only three at the time but I remember in the early 1970’s a few of my friends showed me jars of mercs, silver quarters etc that their folks had stashed away. Apparently hoarding silver coin was a thing back then.

President Johnson in 1965 said, “If anybody has any idea of hoarding our silver coins, let me say this. Treasury has a lot of silver on hand, and it can be, and it will be used to keep the price of silver in line with its value in our present silver coin. There will be no profit in holding them out of circulation for the value of their silver content.”

Remarks at the Signing of the Coinage Act | The American Presidency Project

www.presidency.ucsb.edu

Yep that's why they were still minting silver 1964 coins all the way to 1966 but finally though in the towel because people kept hoarding it just look at the mintage for that year. In 67 when I had my paper route the older guys would be paying you 20 to 30 cents on a dime when you canvased your route to collect money for the papers . Had one lady that always gave me a walker half every Christmas and others silver mercs . sube