Featured Anguilla Freedom Dollar

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by H8_modern, Dec 10, 2022.

  1. H8_modern

    H8_modern Attracted to small round-ish art

    Recently had to buy one of these since I love counterstamps and a good story.

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    And here’s the story, for educational purposes, from PCGS

    A Referendum, a Newspaper Editor & a Coin – The Story of the “Anguilla Liberty Dollar”
    By Jay TurnerApril 9, 2020

    1967 $1, X#2 C/M on Mex 5 Peso, Anguilla, PCGS MS63.

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    1967 $1, X#2 C/M on Mex 5 Peso, Anguilla, PCGS MS63. Click image to enlarge.

    In history, fiction often becomes fact. This is certainly true in numismatics, where sometimes reality is overtaken by salesmanship, ignorance, and lack of published materials. One such glaring case is the “Anguilla” counterstamped coins. Attribution and acceptance for these as coins from Anguilla is commonplace. And why not? The coin says “Anguilla” right on it. Yet the actual story, while condemning to the coins, is actually much more historically interesting and challenging.

    Anguilla is a small British island territory in the Caribbean measuring 16 miles long and three miles wide. With the British ending colonization and granting independence to its former colonies and territories, Anguilla was grouped with Saint Kitts and Nevis as a three-island state. The island of Saint Kitts held the government in the arrangement and dictated everything from what money would go to each island to controlling the police forces. The people of Anguilla were not happy about the political arrangement. The spark that ignited the revolution was a beauty contest held on Anguilla. The winner of the beauty contest was a woman from St. Kitts rather than a native Anguillan. As a result, the contest ended with a shooting and a death. This caused the Anguillan people to riot and expel the Saint Kitts police from the island. The goal of the Anguillan people was not independence but to become a colony again. A provisional government request was made to the United States but was declined. Finally, on July 11, 1967, a referendum was held for Anguillan secession. The vote was 1,813 for secession and five against.

    1967 $1, X#1 C.M on Mex 5 Peso, Anguilla, PCGS MS63.

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    1967 $1, X#1 C.M on Mex 5 Peso, Anguilla, PCGS MS63. Click image to enlarge.

    Scott Newhall, the editor of the San Francisco Chronicle and editor and owner of The Newhall Signalnewspaper covered this story. Sensing opportunity from these events and aware of the popularity of coin collecting in the United States at the time, Newhall sought to profit. Scott Newhall, a coin collector himself, prepared counterstamped dies and purchased 11,600 mixed world coins measuring the approximate diameter of a silver dollar. In the basement of the Chronicle Building in San Francisco, Newhall would use the presses there to counterstamp the dollar-sized coins he purchased with “ANGUILLA LIBERTY DOLLAR” around the center “JULY 11 1967.” Then with ink, he darkened the impressed lettering to make the counterstamp stand out. Interjecting himself into the events and going against all journalistic codes of ethics, he offered the new government of Anguilla the opportunity to use his coins for currency and reportedly gave them between 2,000 and 3,000 coins of the 11,600 he had produced. Anguilla government officials believed he was trying to cheat them and he in turn sent a briefcase down with $10,000 in one-dollar bills hoping to alleviate their fears of him. For him, the program would be a failure, as the coins were never used and his promotional sale of the remaining coins never took off.

    1967 $1, X#4.1 C/M on Yemen Riyal, Anguilla, PCGS MS64.

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    1967 $1, X#4.1 C/M on Yemen Riyal, Anguilla, PCGS MS64. Click image to enlarge.

    Scott Newhall eventually sold the remaining mintage of the “Anguilla” dollars to a California coin dealer for close to their silver value and washed his hands of the deal. With the bags of dollars purchased by the coin dealer, the coins were sorted, counted, and sold into the coin market. Under the guidance of that knowledgeable dealer, the coins were marketed and the scarcer dollars that were used as hosts were sold for more money. Eventually the coins found their way into the Krause Unusual World Coins book. The general hobby marketplace accepted these coins mainly because few people know the story behind these pieces and believe Anguilla is where they were minted because they bear the name of that country.

    Today the “Anguilla” dollars trade based on their host under-types. Most common are coins struck on Mexico 5 Pesos and 10 Pesos, which trade for under $200. Examples struck on Yemen Riyals, Panama Balboas, Peru Sols, and Philippines Pesos are all easily available. Rare host coins such as China Yuan Shih-Kai Dollars are very difficult to obtain and can exceed thousands of dollars when sold publicly. The scarcest Newhall countermark is the gold 100 Dollars struck on a Mexico 50 pesos in which Newhall supposedly only struck two by changing the center of the counterstamp to “JULY $100 1967.”

    1967 $1, X#3 C/M on Peru Sol, Anguilla, PCGS AU53.

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    1967 $1, X#3 C/M on Peru Sol, Anguilla, PCGS AU53. Click image to enlarge.

    1967 $1, X#7.1 C/M on Panama 1 B, Anguilla, PCGS MS62. Image courtesy of PCGS TrueView.

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    1967 $1, X#7.1 C/M on Panama 1 B, Anguilla, PCGS MS62. Image courtesy of PCGS TrueView. Click image to enlarge.

    1967 $1, X#8 C/M on Ecuador 5 Suc, Anguilla, PCGS MS64.

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    1967 $1, X#8 C/M on Ecuador 5 Suc, Anguilla, PCGS MS64. Click image to enlarge.

    Today, it is difficult to properly give a status to the “Anguilla Liberty Dollars.” At the time, it was a money-making opportunity that failed for Newhall. But the government of Anguilla commissioned their own numismatic coins for profit in the following years to their success. With the rise of commemorative and collector coins that arose out of the 1960s and that continue today, Newhall’s coins are no different than many fantasy issues that followed. But his actually had contact with the government named on the coins. He also hoped his pieces would circulate, which is not true of countless coins that followed. In the end, it is up to the collector to make up their mind as to what they collect and, hopefully, with the knowledge of what the issues actually are.
     
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  3. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    You're making me want one.
     
  4. H8_modern

    H8_modern Attracted to small round-ish art

    They’re not that expensive if you go for a basic one.
     
    lordmarcovan likes this.
  5. Pickin and Grinin

    Pickin and Grinin Well-Known Member

    X2

    Fun read H8
     
    lordmarcovan likes this.
  6. Pickin and Grinin

    Pickin and Grinin Well-Known Member

    Just like many folks that make dies and strike coins. A fantasy issue in this case could have led into a bigger contract. One that eventually struck the coins for Anguilla.
    Sadly most of these type coins end up in a collectors stash for years.
    What a cool piece of History!
     
  7. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    I like that one on the Balboa.
     
  8. 7Jags

    7Jags Well-Known Member

    I have collected these for a number of years and the "easy" ones are easy but a few such as the Chinese or the gold are plum crazy (no, not MOPAR) price wise. There was followup and coins were struck for collectors in the following three years - there are also the 1968 silver, gold, and platinum 1968 issues that are not counter stamps featuring a certain "Webster (?)" who was possibly a prime minister. Then 1969 and 1970 silver and gold issues in proof for collectors were issued - I finally got that pesky 1970 10 dollar gold (yikes, a smallish coin).
     
    Pickin and Grinin and H8_modern like this.
  9. Mountain Man

    Mountain Man Supporter! Supporter

    Very informative. Thank you for the post.
     
  10. Coin roll nickler

    Coin roll nickler New Member

    How do I ask a question in general forum here ?
     
  11. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Go back out to the forum you want to post in and click “post new thread”.
     
  12. Coin roll nickler

    Coin roll nickler New Member

    Ok, Thank You
     
    Cheech9712 likes this.
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