Let's see your exonumia!

Better images, I scanned them

 

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I really like the bear one.

 

1831 Large Penny Counterstamped "L.C.CORY."
The coin is a bit dark in hand so I had to use some harsh lighting to get the pics right. I do not know anything else about, just liked the look of this one.





The "L.C.CORY." counterstamp appears on both sides of this coin.

 

Here are some Presidential coins I picked up at an antique mall a few months ago. Being a Coin Collector I couldn't pass them up. Some of you may recall these as a child in School. The coins are of the first 32 Presidents - George Washington thru Harry Truman. On the reverse of each coin is a short inscription of his term of office and accomplishments. I.E.; Washington's Coin reads:
1789 - 1797
First in War
First in Peace
First in the Hearts of his Countrymen
Served Eight Years as President
Without Pay

 

Looks like one for @BRandM

 

Alameda Contra costa transit district 1961


have so many transit tokens no I had to order the Atwood/Coffee catalogue today.

 

nice, interesting counterstamp

Bruce?

@BRandM

 

@ Diplodicus .... Welcome to CoinTalk.

Brunk listed two large cents, dated 1821 and 1855 (catalog # C-954); this, back in 2003. Brunk did then not offer any prospective issuers for this counterstamp. Perhaps, he will do so in his next edition that is currently in the works. The fact that the latest date is 1855 helps narrow the time frame; most likely, between the years 1855-60. The decade of the 1850's tends to be the foremost era for issuing counterstamped coins.

It does appear that, whoever L.C. Cory was, he applied some thought to the placement of his stamp. The obverse position, opposite Liberty's mouth, akin to a speech bubble in cartoons, was often used. It appears that Cory was careful to avoid interfering with this particular cent's design elements. From my perspective, as a student of counterstamps, it would be interesting to see if he was equally careful on other of his specimens.

Looking at some early directories, I see that the name Cory was a relatively common one back then. Having two initials helps somewhat, but oftentimes more info is needed to peg a counterstamp issuer with any degree of certainty.

One L.C. Cory appears in the 1853 Ohio State Business Directory as a livestock dealer, located in New Carlisle. Presently, he's the only one to jump out in my cursory search of online, early directories. While this individual's occupation is not one that is typically associated with counterstamps, it was not uncommon for folks back then to pursue two or more occupations. Then too, many men were active in Masonic and other fraternal orders, learning various skills from their brothers and pursuing patents for their ideas.

To me, the letter style and the use of a "stop" or period, following the surname, suggests this particular counterstamp is a Civil War issue. The stamp is well designed and the issuer may have been a craftsman; this, unless another party made the stamp for him. The fact that there are at least three known specimens suggests that some measure of advertising was intended.

Another, or the same L.C. Cory, appears to have worked in the hardware business for his father, William, in Otsego, NY, circa 1888. He had been working in that business, elsewhere in western NY, some years prior; this, according to a newspaper article I spotted.

On a side note, it has often taken me years to positively ID any particular issuer of a counterstamp. Sometimes, it can be done in minutes, and that's really an AHA moment! For me, the fun of collecting these puppies is the art of unraveling the mystery and history that often accompanies them ... the stories they can tell.

Let's see if Bruce can shed more light ...

 

Sellers photo, I'll do mine when it arrives

 

I can't add much to what Bill has already said, except I did find another possible issuer. There was a 23 year old mechanic with this name living in a boarding house in Winchester, MA in the 1860 Federal Census. No way to tell if he was the issuer or not, but it's a possibility. I couldn't trace him any later

Brunk's new edition still lists only the two same specimens, again without an attribution. Yours, then, is only the third documented. What I found interesting was that he also listed an H.J. Cory (C-953) with one example stamped on an 1854 Half Dollar. Same time frame as J.C.'S piece, so possibly they're related. I searched for both names thinking I might find one of them and could somehow link him to the other. Unfortunately, I had no luck with that line of research.

I agree with Bill's estimation of when Cory's coins were struck. I doubt they were done after 1865 at the latest. I'll look a bit more later, but this is a tough one.

Bruce

 

Not sure if I posted these before

 

Here are the two other bars that came in with the Hitler/Saddam war criminals bar

 

In reviewing what I wrote, I erred by omitting the word "PRE" before "Civil War." In other words, the Cory counterstamp was most likely produced prior to the Civil War.

Bruce found a plausible issuer with his census search. Machinists often made their own counterstamps; this, in the process of making ones for others. It would be their "business card" of sorts. The machinist could also use his stamp to mark his tools and personal possessions. Brother Masons could also flash their "card" to one another.

 

Where would I / Should I post new elongated coins that I've just created?

 

This thread seems to be a catch-all for exonumia, old and modern. I suppose, if you want to highlight and continually focus upon your products while avoiding the mix, you could start your own thread ... I've yet to hear from any naysayers about my posts on the old counterstamps.

Your choice!