The American Eagle 1-ounce silver bullion coin was introduced during first-strike ceremonies on Oct. 29, 1986.

The American Eagle silver bullion program came into being as a way for the government to sell silver from its Defense National Stockpile, combined with pressure from silver mining interests in the United States. After several false starts, silver American Eagles were authorized as part of the "Liberty Coin Act" in 1985.

By 2002, the stockpile was nearing depletion and legislation was approved and signed into law to allow the secretary of the Treasury to purchase silver on the open market once the stockpile was exhausted.

The American Eagle silver bullion coin contains 1 troy ounce silver and is .999 fine. It has a slightly modified version of A.A. Weinman's Walking Liberty design on the obverse and a Heraldic Eagle design of John Mercanti on the reverse. The coin bears a denomination of $1.

Proof versions of the 1-ounce silver coin were offered starting in 1986 and have been offered every year since their introduction except 2009.

From 2006 through 2008, Uncirculated coins were produced for collectors with special burnished surfaces.

Silver American Eagles have been produced at the San Francisco, Philadelphia and West Point Mints.

In 2006, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the American Eagle bullion coin program, 1-ounce silver and gold American Eagles were issued with a Reverse Proof finish, which resulted in frosted fields and brilliant devices, the opposite of the mirrored fields and frosted devices of the regular Proof coins.

A popular variety in the American Eagle silver bullion coin series is the 2008-W American Eagle, Reverse of 2007 coin, in which the obverse die for the 2008 Uncirculated coins was accidentally paired with a 2007 reverse die. The variety is distinguished by differences in the U in UNITED STATES and the shape of the dash between SILVER and ONE.

Collectors also covet the Proof 1995-W American Eagle silver coin, with a low mintage of just 30,125 pieces. It was included in a special set that included the four gold American Eagle coins produced to honor the 10th anniversary of the American Eagle bullion coin program.

American Eagle bullion coins are not sold directly to the general public by the U.S. Mint, but instead are sold through a network of authorized suppliers. The Proof versions are sold directly to the public by the U.S. Mint, as were the Reverse Proof and Uncirculated versions.