Within each of your respective collections, there is undoubtedly coins of great value and beauty. But, I would imagine that everyone of us also has a coin (or coins) that we have acquired over the years (or decades) that have a special story that is worth a greater value to the owner of the coin than it could ever fetch if listed for sale. I thought it would be fun to share some of those stories...so here is one of mine. I first began collecting coins when I was in the 6th grade or so, that would have been around 1996. Not long after I started collecting, I found this little coin shop called "Al's Stamps and Coins." It was a smaller shop owned by an older gentleman (Al) who was semi-retired and used the shop to make a little extra money and hang around with his regulars (also older semi-retired guys...and me) and tell crazy old stories. In a lot of ways, it was like a scene from Cheers...except in a coin shop rather than a pub. Al's shop didn't have the best inventory, and some of them were problem coins (which he sold very cheap), but it was a fun place. It was where the base of many of my sets came from. As a young collector, I tried to collect everything...but my main focuses were Lincoln Cents (like everyone) and Morgan Dollars. By the time I was in the 8th grade or so, I had pieced together a set of Lincoln's minus a couple of the keys. When Christmas rolled around, my parents wanted to help me with one of the key coins so they stopped by Al's. When Christmas morning came, I went to open my presents. One of them was a small box. I unwrapped it and opened the box and a 2x2 flip fell out and landed on the carpet. Seeing it was a Lincoln, I reached down and picked it up and this is what I found: I was so excited to read the 1914-D on the package. I just couldn't believe it. I was so excited...I didn't even look at the coin. After a minute or two, I began to calm down and started to examine my new prize in detail. Then all of a sudden, my excitement turned into panic as I looked at the coin...because I saw this: This wasn't a 1914-D, it was a 1952-D...this must be some terrible mistake I thought. Al wouldn't rip my parents off, this is wrong. I couldn't believe it. I didn't know what to do. My parents standing there so happy to see me excited...I couldn't tell them what it really was...could I. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, my parents just busted up laughing. What I thought was a terrible mistake just turned out to be a cruel joke. Eventually, they instructed me to look inside the little box and under a piece of paper taped to the top was another 2x2 also taped to the top. Inside that 2x2 I found a real 1914-D...it was heavily worn and had some damage, but it was a real 1914-D. I still have the mislabeled coin in the 2x2 it came in and I wouldn't sell it if someone offered real 1914-D money. It is a special part of my collection that means a lot to me. I'm sure others here have similar stories and it would be fun to hear some of them.
What a wonderful story and told so well.....maybe you should send it in to a coin mag...or newspaper.:thumb::thumb::thumb:
Great story. I also have one to share. On January 1st. 1997 I took my wife, a friend, and his wife to a location in Ok. that at one time had been a trading post pre-atatehood, for wagon trains going over the Arbuckle Mtns. We searched a few hours finding all kinds of artifacts but no coins. Fixing to leave I searched another area and it was about 5 inches deep. An 1887 v nickel. 100 years old on the day I found it. I plan to give it away for Christmas
Wow, great story! I have one, too. Back in 1968, when my dad was just a kid, he got into coin collecting. He would regularly go to the bank to get coin rolls to look through for his collection. In 1968, he spent all his money on a roll of dimes. (his family was very poor) he opened it up, and was very frustrated when it was full of brand new 1968D's. Since he had nothing better to do, he looked through it for mint errors. Near the end of the roll, he found a 1968S. He went and told a few people, but they all thought he was lying because all were made as proofs. He still has, to this day, the dime that was never made.
That's a big part of what coin collecting is all about. Unreal and yet so honest and totally from the heart! Great story and a keeper for life! It's stories like these that keep the hobby of coin collecting special enough to collect a lifetime!! WTG!
That's a great story, thanks for sharing. I remember sorting through the giant jar of pennies at my grandmother's home that HER mother had saved from her drugstore at the turn of the century. Each year for Christmas she would let me sift through a few, grade them, price them using the redbook (which at the time I knew as the only price guide) and keep $25 (redbook value) worth (I was very conscientious of trying to not undergrade at all; little did I know that using the redbook I was pricing them pretty high to begin with). When I was 11 I stumbled upon an 1914-D Penny, and I explained to my amazed grandmother how much it was worth. Of course, *I* turned into the amazed one when she told me to go ahead and "add it to my little pile for this Christmas." I kept it in the little cardboard whitman folder for YEARS and now have taken it out to slab it, but I wouldn't sell it- even for twice its redbook value! --- Silver and gold are not the only coin; virtue too passes current all over the world. - Euripides www.coinsignment.com
I have a story. When I was around 10, when I started collecting, I was looking in the phone book for coin stores, and I found one. It was a small store, with very limited hours, but I loved to go there. It was maintained and owned by a older woman and her husband. They greeted me, when I first when there, and showed me around. I bought about 5 dollars worth of Lincolns and she told me about this coin club they had every secound and fourth Tuesday.I attended and there was this segment called show and tell. I went up with my almost finished lincon penny collection from 1959 and on. I opened it up and all of the coins were black. Everybody started laughing, and I was like what? i realized later that the reason was because I had not bought these coins but found them all in the jar that was filled with black ink. I though at first when i saw the coins that they were really supposed to be like that since I thought it was natural. I will never forget about that.
I read some of your coin story and it all very nice to read. I am also sharing mine, The Story of Eleven Cent as 1995 P Penny On Dime. Now Let me tell you all the story of this INFAMOUS Unique Eleven Cent as 1995 Penny On Dime. The Story of 1995 Penny On Dime/The Gratitude. It was drizzling in the early afternoon on a weekend on February 1988, before Valentine's Day. We had overcast skies. My auntie invited me to go to the shopping mall with her and two of my cousin, She drove the car while I sat in front and my cousins sat at the back. While we were inside the mall, my auntie told me to go back to the car because she forgot her purse, I went running back to the car because it was raining outside. I did not have an umbrella with me. A four to five year old child running towards me from their car when a black speeding car suddenly appeared on my right. Instinctively, I grabbed the child before the car hit him. The parents were shocked with the sudden turn of events. After recovering from the shock, they thanked me for saving their beloved child. To show their gratitude for what I did, they offered me some cash, which I refused. I told them that it just happened that I was there at the right time so just forget the whole incident. They asked my name , where I was heading for, and my address, which I gave to them. 1995, Seven years after, a respectable gentlemen knocked at my door. I let him in on my humble condominium, he said that he brought something for me for Christmas. He opened an attaché' case with _________________________________________________________and a white looking penny. He said that he was send by the family to show gratitude for saving the life of their child. He told me to choose between the CASH or the penny, I opted for the penny. I thanked the guy, Then, he got his cell phone and contacted his Boss. He handed the phone to me and I was able to talk to the person at the other line. He said; my son, you just did a good job today. Now you own the the Most Valuable Coin ( Double Denomination) in the World... just be careful on this one then, the man left. On the year 2000,Mr. Alan Hager certified the penny as 1995 Penny On Dime, Mint; the inventor of certification slabbing coin experts in NUMISMATIST WORLD, Mr. Alan Hager personally graded it. " IT IS ONLY ONE OF IT'S KIND. pennyondime.com
For me some special coins would be an 1980 Australia 20 Pence, 1984 Australia one dollar and 1988 Australia two dollar. Back in the 6th grade my language arts teacher had us do this writing project where we would write to other kids our age in Australia in honor of Australia's 200th anniversary. This was before social media and the internet (1987-88 school year). Several months passed and one class in Ipswich, Queensland Australia responded to our letters. I had four respond to mine. Eventually we were pen pals for a year and one of them sent me those coins as a Christmas present and I of course sent her some. Being 11-12 years old at the time and no allowance to buy coins these three coins were the first ones I ever owned that were not US or Canada. I had some Canadian coins that my dad gave me from a trip we took to Canada in 1985 which actually started my passion for coins and some wheat cents and Bicentennial quarters that I gotten in change.
Growing up, I was a 'coin addict'. I constantly searched through my parents change looking for wheat cents (had no clue about silver in that day). I was pretty darn close to finishing my wheat cent book, (minus some of the more key dates). My uncle owned an Antique shop up in Maine. One day, he came down to visit and said "I hear you like coins?"... I answered that I really did. He said "Here you go.. Found these in a drawer of a desk I just refurbished.". Laid into my hands were a half dozen dark coins the size of a half dollar. They were well worn and hard to make out. As I examined them more closely, I could make out Hibernia. Some of the coins even had a readable date. I remember a few of them dated from the 1600's... and a few from the 1700's. Back in those days, the internet wasn't around so I headed down to the library to look up information on this Hibernia. As I soon found out, it was an Irish based currency. I was incredibly excited to have such old coins, and to top it off, I had Irish decent in my blood, so I was even more connected to the coins. Later in life, I was working at a company where I worked with chemicals. One of the chemicals I worked with was rather volitile, but it really cleaned metal very nicely. Granted, if you stuck your hands in it, it would remove all oils from your skin.. but it was a good chemical for cleaning! I had always wanted to get the coins cleaned up some.. so in my moment of 'brilliance' (being sarcastic there), I brought in one of my Hibernia coins to try to clean it up. I dropped the coin in and let it sit for a good half hour in the solution. I took the coin out, and gave it a scrub. It took SOME of the crud off... but it wasn't that great of an improvement. I gave up, and threw the coin in my desk drawer. Fast forward about a week later... I remembered that my coin was in my desk drawer, so I went to fetch it. I now had TWO coins! Yeah... the chemical was so strong, it obviously corroded the coin further, and it broke in two pieces while sitting in my desk drawer. Needless to say, never ever attempted that ever again... Some lessons are hard learned.
