NGC 1904-o Pittman Act Morgan Dollar $1 Graded BU By NGC. On April 23, 1918, the Pittman Act was enacted. A Law sponsored by Nevada Senator Key Pittman, it directed the government of the United states to collect massive quantities of U.S. silver dollars and melt them down, both for sales to Great Britain, and for the striking of new U.S. silver dollars. At the time, the Morgan Silver Dollar was still in use, having been struck from silver mined from the famous Comstock Lode in the days of the Wild West. Hundreds of millions of these coins were struck, but thanks to the Pittman Act, hundreds of millions were bought up by the U.S. government and melted down. This single act, plus the ravages of time and circulation, has led experts to believe that as little as 15% of all Morgans still exist today in any condition.