One of the best Booker T. Washington's you will ever see! What amazes me is that nobody seems to like these coins. I don't even think minority collectors like this coin. What's the story on this half dollar, does anyone really know? Was it because Congress was hussled into having this half commemorative dollar minted in the first place? Was having a black man on a half dollar in the 40's too much, too soon? Maybe it was before it's time by at least 30yrs or so. From reading the link the US Mint had some trouble getting these coins out the doors and to the public. All I know is this Booker T. Washington that I have looks just fine, to me!! The Jackie Robinson commemorative is always in demand! What's your opinion on Booker T half dollars? http://www.usrarecoininvestments.com/collecting/btw.htm
I like it, a lot! It's one of only three comems. I have, two classic and 1 modern. it's a great design and the high mintage kept it low enough in cost that even i could collect it. sorry for the poor typing/grammer eating breakfast and typing at the same time lol
Do you really know who Booker T. Washington was? He surpassed the racial, and discriminatory ideology of his time by becoming not only an educator, but a political leader as well; all in a time that still believed black citizens to be an inferior race.
Yes, I absolutely know who the man was. My point is, I have a very nice coin and the public was very divided when the coin was initially released. Here's a link for the ppl who get Booker T Washington mixed up with that other Booker T. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booker_T._Washington
The B T Washington had several things against it. Yes it probably suffered from racial bigotry. It also suffered for collectors disenchantment with all the scams in the commemorative coins fiascos from the 1930's. Especially since with the multi-year and mint program that the BTW was going to have again it looked like the same scam all over again. And frankly it isn't that nice a coin. The obv is good but the rev seems very uninspired. It could have been worse though, and they proved that in 1951 when they created the Washington-Carver half. Try and increase sales by honoring a second negro, and to make sure it gets passed throw in a sop to the McCarthyism and the Red scare by including in the authorizing legislation that part of the money would go to the nebulous goal of "Preventing the spread of Communism among Negros". (Was this really a problem?)
