Recently I've started to take a second look at tokens when I'm at my LCS. There's a lot of interesting older stuff, and once in awhile I see an attractive newer piece as well. Here are ten that I picked up this week that I thought worth sharing. Of course please share anything you know about them. This is one of the coolest ones and the one I paid the most for. 1812 Weybridge (UK) penny token. Only one for sale on eBay right now and it looks worse than mine. I believe this is a Civil War token. It's the size of a quarter though in the style of a cent. Another Civil War token. Carl Paeschke, Milwaukee. 1909 Alaska-Yukon Pacific Exposition souvenir token. Has a silver coating over bronze (?) that is kind of coming off. 1959 Alaska statehood medal. This is silver. I bought it because I collect bear coins but I thought I might already have it and I was correct. It's still cool though. This is strange and I'll probably never know what it is. Aurora, IL is nearby but the name of Theodore Roosevelt on the back is odd. I'm also not sure why it looks like it was meant to be a medal that was punched out but no one removed the extra metal around it. I'd love some opinions on this one. Nothing found on Google. This California bicentennial medal is for my bear collection. I'm thinking bicentennial of the first Spanish settlement or something because it's not statehood. I got two large medals in a series about the Johnstown, PA flood. Anything that mentions "Flaming debris" is OK with me. Here's the second Johnstown flood piece. Finally this seems to be a World War I service medal, though I don't know if medal is the correct word. It's not a military decoration but a token of some kind.
Be careful with tokens, they can be dangerously addictive. The Aurora Illinois piece is a watch fob. I'm not sure about the extra metal. Maybe that's how they were made? Here's a similar one: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/city-lights-aurora-ill-illinois-vtg-1908099899
Wow, some super nice tokens there! The Seaward / Alaska one is a Robert McNamara piece from the Heradic Art Medals Series.
I believe the first token is a British Conder Token...much like the US HTT series. The second two are Civil War Tokens. You picked up a nice group of pieces. Congrats! Bruce
Thanks, that's more than I expected to find. I still wonder about the extra medal and the Roosevelt name on the back.
June 3, 1903 was Theodore Roosevelt Day in Aurora, IL. He stopped for a visit and there was a parade with 50 carriages. https://aurorahistory.org/this-month-in-aurora-history-june/ and https://www.tracyduran.com/2022/11/1st-presidential-visit-to-aurora-il-1903.html etc. He stopped in many towns in IL that day. Seems like a hurried token of some sort, considering his name is counterstamped and doesn't line up with the obverse. I'm not sure how someone would cut that out into a watch fob. Odd that I can't find anything else with that obverse design (other than the other link posted above). There was a pocket watch maker in Aurora but that was 1883-92.
Be careful with tokens, they can be dangerously addictive. That's for sure, especially the ones with trains. I just found this one.
I have many tokens, some old, some new but all interesting and when you see a token that really catches your eye, you have to have it. That’s when the obsession to start collecting tokens begins.
I like train tokens as well. If you remember my recent post, I posted the Union Pacific train from the 1930s.
