Featured A Coin...With a Story

While Lincolns are not what I collect they are what I started on back in the late 60's. We used to go to grandma's house on Sunday morning. Each sunday me and my brother were allowed to search her pennies for Wheaties. So each week we would find a few and dad would put them back. Eventually dad bought some of the old blue Whitman albums and we started filling them in. After a few years they got put aside, but it got dad to collecting US proof sets. He did this until a few years ago - then he sold them all because frankly the only person interested in coins was me. So he might as well enjoy the fruits of his labor himself - which was fine with me. At that time he gave me the old blue albums. I took the best of them and put them in a dansco album. Then I started filling in the key dates and the other coins needed. The album is now filled - well except for one pesky 2009 that I can't find in change. Not sure I would ever sell them.

 

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Many years ago, there was one online coin forum in Canada, CCRS... one gentlemen there was a token dealer and offered an interesting 1859 to a good friend of mine (Bill - also known as 'Bill in Burl' here). On CCRS, Bill was, of course, using 'Bill in Burl' as his online handle, and the token dealer was using 'Carpman'...

More than once, Bill's big ol' fingers would mistype 'Crapman' on the old CCRS forum... which amused the masses greatly...

In 2012, Bill had sent me all his 1859 Canadian large cents for a massive XRF study in my quest to help figure out the 1859 brass cent. I found the coin Bill had bought from Carpman, because it was written in pencil... well, being the mischievous person I am, I soon found an eraser, and replaced the pencil letters appropriately... Bill still has the coin, in the original holder (albeit, corrected)...

We still laugh about this one over beers at coin shows in Toronto...

 

As a fourth generation collector, I consider much of my collection as the family set, and part of a permanent collection. I never considered any of those coins to be for sale, but some had to be liquidated to help other family members get back on their feet after hurricane Katrina. Over twenty of my relatives homes were lost, and I'm sure my grandfather and great grandfather would have insisted that some coins were sold to help out. Some things are just more important.

But there is one coin that I would never sell. For one, it wouldn't be worth the price of gas to get it to the coin shop. For two, no amount of money will drag it from my grasp. The coin is just an ordinary 1943 mercury dime. It's a dull grey coin that would probably grade XF-45, but it looks every bit a MS-70 FSB to me. I hold it so dear because it was the first coin that my grandmother ever gave to me. That coin set me on the path to our great hobby and is one of the few things that I have left from her. Though the rest of my set would average MS-62 or 3, that beautiful 1943 will remain in my dansco forever in all of its glory. Here's to you Anna Mae.

 

Great story. I can't top that one. A coin story that involves Christmas with your parents is as good as it probably gets.

 

As far as I can remember back I was probably about 7 or 8 when I first got into collecting. I came out of the womb collecting sports card because of my father, but coins took a few years longer. My grandparents had some small plastic piggy bank they got me and would save all of their dimes they got in change and put them in that bank for me. The significant reason on why the dimes I cannot remember. But one day it got too full and was time to break it open. Pulled out my first silver coin ever being a silver Roosevelt (don't remember the year). My dad started looking at his change from there on saving wheats, buffalos, silver anything interesting and fun to save.

 

In 2002 my youngest daughter was in 4th grade. We live in the SF Bay Area, and in the local school district the 4th graders go for a 5 day field trip to the Gold Country to learn about CA. history (and geology, botany etc.). I was one of the parents that signed on to be a volunteer on that trip. Being a coin junkie, it seemed appropriate to try and bring a little something along. I went to the local B&M to try and pick up something for the trip. They had some CA. fractionals, but I knew that for 9 - 10 year olds, you'd want something with more heft than that. I ended up getting this piece. Obviously I know that it was minted in Philly but the odds are reasonable that there is CA. gold in it, and it does have the magic date. During the field trip the kids did get to see some gold nuggets at museums (and stores) and go panning for gold (some kids got some flakes), but this coin seemed to really spark their (and their teacher's and parent's) interest... it Was Money. Having the date on it seemed to make the stories they were hearing more Real for everyone. I kept this coin as a pocket piece during the field trip and for about 6 months afterwards. It was fun to see the kids faces as they held this coin in their hands.

 

Your link is not working !!

 

I'm not surprised. That link was posted in 2008 and CT has made some changes since then. Heck, I think Bone hasn't been around here in a number of years.

 

This was a good thread to bring back from the dead.