Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;johnmilton, post: 3431118, member: 101855&quot;]One of the first U.S. gold coins that I can remember seeing was an 1853-D gold dollar. My mother’s cleaning lady had four gold dollars that were family heirlooms. In the spring of 1960, she brought them with her to show me. I had only been collecting for a few months and seeing those pieces was a revelation. I could not believe how small they were, and one of them caught my eye.</p><p><br /></p><p>When I looked on the reverse I saw the date 1853 and a “D” mint mark under the wreath. When I looked it up on my 13th Edition of “The Red Book,” I saw that it was something special.</p><p><br /></p><p>Although the cleaning lady did sell many coins to me, she would not part with the gold dollars. Finally when she was short of funds, she did sell me one piece, an 1854 Type II that graded VF-20 or so. The date was very weak which made it less than totally desirable, but it was my first gold coin. I never could get her to sell the 1853-D however.</p><p><br /></p><p>Word had it that one of the men in town had offered her $50 for that piece. That might not sound like much today, but back then that was the going price listed in “The Red Book,” and $50 was a week’s wages or more for a lot people in my area.</p><p><br /></p><p>When I started working on a date and mint set of the Type I gold dollars, I finally got an 1853-D I bought it at the 2014 Winter FUN Show. It grades AU-58, and it’s probably nicer than the one I saw when I was 11 years old, but it still brings back memories.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]910973[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]910974[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in