1900 Silver Lesher Dollar HK-790, C.A. Morris Druggist

Coin Details

Description

This Lesher Referendum Dollar (HK-790) documents Joseph Lesher's grassroots Free Silver experiment — he called them 'Referendum' dollars because no one was compelled to accept them; they were referred to the people for acceptance or rejection. This 1900 variety is from the first year of production. On November 13, 1900, in the small mining town of Victor, Colorado, Joseph Lesher (1838-1918) struck the first of his privately issued silver dollars. Born in Fremont, Ohio, on July 12, 1838, Lesher had settled in Victor in the heart of the Cripple Creek mining district, one of the richest gold-producing regions in Colorado. Frustrated by the federal government's refusal to coin silver freely after the Coinage Act of 1873, Lesher created his own silver currency, calling them 'Referendum' dollars because no one was compelled to accept them — they were referred to the people for acceptance or rejection. Lesher's private coinage operated in a legal gray area regarding the federal government's monopoly on currency issuance. According to his 1914 interview with Farran Zerbe (1871-1949), the legendary ANA figure, government agents seized the dies used for the initial and Bumstead types. However, the American Numismatic Society collection, donated by Zerbe himself (including 2 obverse dies, 1 reverse die, 2 punches, and 3 bed plates), complicates the seizure narrative. Zerbe published his account in the American Journal of Numismatics in 1917, and Lesher estimated his total production at 3,000 to 3,500 pieces. So-called dollars acquired their name because they are not true dollar coins but rather privately issued medals that approximate the size and weight of U.S. silver dollars. The collecting specialty emerged in the early 20th century and was formalized by the Hibler-Kappen catalog, which organized hundreds of diverse pieces — from exposition medals to political tokens to private monetary experiments — into a coherent collecting framework.

Rarity Notes

Lesher Referendum Dollars are rare across all varieties, with total mintage estimated at only a few hundred pieces per type. The C.A. Morris variety is rare, with only a small number of known examples. These pieces are highly prized by collectors of both so-called dollars and Western Americana.

Cross References

HK-790; PCGS #643504