Oke, I just noticed this post wil be my 291th on this forum. Since i won a contest allready when i was just new to this website, and i learned much from this site allready i want to thank you guys with a small contest. You have time to participate until i reach my 350th post. The prize: a Belgium 100 Francs Silver 4 Kings coin. Quality: VF Metal: Silver 0.835 Weight: 18 gram Diameter: 33 mm (date on the coin can be different than the date on the picture) Its not a big prize i know, but that is one i can afford right now What to do to participate: Very simple: You reply to this topic with a little story how you got into coin collecting, and about the first coin you had in your collection. This does not have to be a big story, but i would like at least 300 words in the complete story (pictures are also welcomed, but they dont count as words) Have fun, and remember, my 350th post will be the one telling the contest is over. After i read them i will take the names of the writers of my favorite story's, put them in a bag and then an innocent child (my 6year old son) will pull 1 name out of a bag. So everybody has chanse to win the prize. Have fun writing
Nice try, but you are not getting away with it that easely i recieved 1 story so far in my PM box, lets just say i dont muind getting them in the PM box, but the idea is to place them here as a reply to this treath. So Merc, nice storry, copy paste it here if you want
I have been 18 for a few months now and i have been collecting coins since i was a young child. My grandfather was the one who got me into it and i quickly surpassed him by the time i was in my early teenage years. As time went by i became more and more fascinated with coins and the idea of having a collection. Then i found out one of my friends dads was a big coin collector. I eventually became close to him and he eventually started to sell/ give me coins I needed for my Dansco albums. I started off with pennies and nickels, then got to silver dimes and quarters. after all that i moved on to halves and dollars. Coin collecting has helped me over the years get through all the rough stuff life threw at me. It has always helped me get my mind off of the world around me and enjoy life for what it is. The first coin I ever got was a 1943 steel penny. My grandfather gave it to me when I was around 6 years old. This is the coin that set off the “spark” of the coin bug. It would always wonder why it was silver in color. Now, being a collector for nearly a decade I realize that it was a wartime issue during ww2 when there was a copper shortage. As of now, I have a few rolls of the 1943 pennies. Over the last decade my collection has really changed from the single 1943 penny in rough shape to many drawers and shelves filled. This single coin inspired me to want only more and better condition coins. I also hope that over the years I will have time to continue this hobby and expand my knowledge on coins in the future. Also thanks for a contest!!!
I like this contest a lot! Okay, so my grandfather was a huge coin collector starting in the late 50's. He started me on proof sets since the year I was born. However, I would say that my first coin in my collection is a 1901 half crown (like the one posted below). My great grandmother gave it to me when I was very young. Since then, I would hang onto anything older/interesting. Since then, my interest has grown, especially once my grandfather showed me his full collection. In particular, my grandfather collected Lincoln cents and junk silver, which I collect in particular. Thank you for the contest!
I am one of the newer generation folk that some seem to believe are only into video gaming and the internet and have no real time/interest in coin collecting. In some ways, I was that kind of kid growing up. However, my Grandma and Grandpa were avid coin collectors, and when I was around 8 years old, they gave me a map album to collect and store the new state quarters in. Each year, I would look for the new coins in our spare change after shopping and add them to my map. When my Grandma passed, my Grandpa sought to continue her collection and bought me a few coins that he would send to me randomly in the mail or give to me as gifts as I was growing up. For quite a while, I shrugged them off, thinking I'd never really have much of a collection because coins seemed to cost too much. Recently, my Great Aunt passed away and, as we were cleaning out her old condo, I came across my late Great Uncle's coin collection. I was elated to see all the different varieties of cool coins he had, from many different years and countries (that I assume he accumulated during his military duty). Even though the collection was valuable, and my dad wanted to sell it for the silver content, I was insistent on trying to hold onto it because the coins were interesting and meaningful to me. In the end, my dad saw it from my point of view and has let me keep the collection. Since then, my interest in coins has been growing quite rapidly. But I must be careful not to get too addicted to it since, as a college student, I really should be spending my money wisely and sparingly! Anyway, thanks for holding this contest. - Brian
My Grandfather piqued my interest when I was six years old. He was showing me the new 1961 penny that had just come out and how the date was the same when inverted. Then, he reached into his pocket and gave me three large cents with which to start a collection. I collected coins until I was about 14. Nothing rare, just whatever I came across in change. That year, I ran away from home and took the collection to fund my new life. However, I had polished each and every coin to a beautiful shine and was completely disappointed when the coin dealer told me they were virtually worthless. I needed the money and accepted the offer which was very close to face value. I didn't collect coins again until about five years ago. Now, I'm obsessed with them.
Hmmmmm. This is the same contest as WingedLiberty's before. Can I send the same entry. It's practically the same story though
My dad collected mostly silver coins in the 60s when I was a young boy. He had hundreds, thousands of silver half dollars, dimes and morgans. He also bought MINT and PROOF coin sets from the Mint through about mid 70s. His silver collection was mostly for the bullion value. As a young kid I was mostly amazed at the shiney PROOF SETS even though there were more dollars in the silver collection. I spent alot of the silver coins late 60s on candy. When he passed away in the 2003 I inherited alot of Mint and Proof sets which oddly enough did not thrill me. I think my dad cashed in the silver hoard. I sold all the Mint Sets and bought my daughter a car. I got the Morgan bug and completed a MS set of raw Morgans with all but three key coins were missing. I sold the set late 2004 and now have the bug again. I currently collect only slabbed Morgans. I particularlly like unusually toned or rainbow versions. I don't collect them but really like BUFFALOS, and MERCURYS. My suggestions to those who collect is to channel in on something you like and concentrate on the KEY DATES because these hold their value the most and are the most demanded coin.
there was one like this before? oops If you edit the story a bit its ok Exactly the same not (a little bit of work for a proze is never bad )
For my birthday (I think it was my ninth) my dad gave me two 1983 (the year I was born) proof sets. That got me somewhat interested. So a while later he gave me an 1899-O Morgan, which really got me hooked. I kinda lost some of my interest in my teens, but I still got my coins out and admired them occasionally. Then when I was 22 I was desperate for money, so I started going through my collection trying to figure out how much I could sell it for. While sorting through them, I realized how much I loved my coins, so I sold my car instead. I had 2 cars at the time though I sold my gas guzzling Cadillac that I loved, because I decided I'd rather keep the coins I told myself I would never sell any. In the last couple of years things have come up though and I've been forced to sell a few. But I wrote down each one and plan to replace them. That was actually the story of how I got into coins, and the story of how I got BACK into coins. This is the Morgan that got me hooked. I still have it, and the proof sets.
^^^ Are you strictly adhering to the 300 word rule? I just realized I probably didn't type that much. But I'd be happy to edit my post later to add some details and bring it up to 300.
the 300th rule is not that strict. So far every entry is long enough (ofcourse someone that onli wrine like 20 words will be excluded )
How I got interested was on a bad basis. My Grandmother has a silver stash I dipped my sticky fingers in 4 years ago, and I took all the walking liberty halves (6) and the franklins (5 out of 300 in there) and a few mercury dimes and washington quarters and ikes. I went with my childhood raccoon instinct and hid the shinnies somewhere nobody would find them. It definitely worked because I forgot where I put them. 2 years later, my mom found them, found out it was me and I had no recollection of where I got them for 2 days until I had a flashback-dream of me stealing them, so the next day I grabbed them from my mom and walked to my grandmothers house with the coins. She, to my surprise, was not at all angry with me, just sighed and started talking to me. She said that I am not the only one, but I am the only one who didn't spend them. She told me a lot about the history of those specific coins and how she had them since 1966 and collected them from her years of being a bank teller. I soon saw that each and every coin has a history behind them, and decided I like them. Ever since I started collecting, I have done a little research on the newest coin series in my collection, right now I am learning about seated dimes. But the greatest part about this collecting hobby I have is that I am getting better grades in my history class :thumb:. Just as a disclamer, I have kept any and all records of my coin purchases I have made since. And I am being honest as physically possible even when it is not coin related. This hobby/obsession has really helped me develop to become a gentleman at the age of 16 but I have heard some people say I sound like I am in my late 60s :yes: True story. But I tell them I am raised well by my momma. But I have found the group of nice respectful people who will help me become a better person who is focused on morals rather than quick prosperity. ~Cannyn
