Collecting from influence of relatives

I was wondering how many of you started collecting coins from the influence of relatives.

I got started collecting with the help of my grandfather. He would give me wheat cents and buffalo nickels mainly when I was a kid. He took me to a few shows when I was 10 or so. I would guy a few cheap Lincolns while he would buy key date lincolns, indian cents, and mercs (he never got the 16-D though).

A few years ago I started adding to his collection and have been hooked ever since, I no small part thanks to the fine folks at Coin Talk. :high5:

 

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I was influenced by my parents, uncle and grandfather. I started as a kid by pulling canadian cents out of pocket change. I have to admit, my "discovery" of the ASE is what really got me going again in adulthood. I couldn't believe how nice the coin was.

 

I think you'll find that most people got started that same way. For me it was my uncle, though I stopped in my early teens and didn't resume until he died about ten years later. My grandfather was also influential.

I miss them both.

 

My father got me into collecting when I was probably around twelve. Ironically, I am currently trying to get him back into collecting. I bought him a birth year set recently, and have given him my coin folders I've replaced with albums. Any additional advice for getting him back into numismatics would be appreciated!!!

 

My parents don't collect but they wanted too find me a hobby that I would not outgrow so they got me started but it was really a really nice coin dealer named Denis that made me fall in love with the hobby.

 

Thanks to my Father, Uncle, & Kita

My father gave me Whitman coin folders for Mercury dimes, Roosevelt Dimes, Jefferson Nickels & all the Lincolns. Most of the Mercury coins came from him because they were all disappearing from circulation. After I was hooked on coins, my Uncle took over. He was pit-boss at a Lake Tahoe casino. When I was about 11 he would bring me a bag of coins to search almost every night. I had to pay for any coins I kept and I had the budget of an 11 year old. Hindsight is 20-20. Instead of searching bags of low cost nickels & dimes, I should have been laser focused on the dollars before they disappeared. At this time the lady that raised me & my father died. Her name was Kita & she left me her 70 silver dollars.

 

I would love to hear from others of coarse, but so far this shows the importance of trying to get our kids interested in collecting. My daughter showed a brief interest, but she's a teen now :rolling:, so I'll have to be patient with her. My son loves to go to shows with me, but has little focus. He does love to collect/accumulate paper money and hopefully as he gets older he will gain patience and focus. As far as that goes maybe when I grow up I will gain focus also.

 

My grandfather got me started, my father helped me along.

 

My dad got me interested in it.

 

I got my father started collecting. No one in my family collected, I was a self starter and then infected my father so I would have a funding source. (Underhanded little schemer wasn't I?)

 

my father got me started collecting. while he did not do any serious collecting himself, he did keep a few old coins in his dresser. i didnt stick with it very long as a kid, but later on in life i got back into it. we sit around and look at what we have. while my father is older and less mobile, i wish i could return the favor and get him into more serious collecting, but with him losing his job 2 weeks before christmas, i dont see it happening. it would be nice to have things in common again though.

 

Without a doubt. My Uncle too. He also gave me my love of trains.

the 4x4s, boozing and women... those were mine.

All, all very expenive hobbies.

 

I did not have anyone around me that cared a whit about coins while I was growing up. I was given the typical coin and stamp collecting things for my birthday (or was it Christmas?) in 1964. (Stamp collecting quickly fell to the wayside.)

The coin collecting items included a Blue Book and several coin folders that I tried to fill from change. I had to motivate myself to collect coins because there was no one else that I knew that collected coins. I remember once my father arranged for a local vest pocket dealer to come to the house and I bought some coins from him. (I remember buying a VERY worn 179? Large Cent and a Bust Half Dollar. I was especially intrigued with the edge lettering on the Bust Half.) I collected coins (to a small degree) and learned what I could - all on my own - until I started college in 1973.

 

It was my dad. I'm going to try to introduce my nephew to the hobby, and my own kinds of course, assuming I have some someday.

 

My Great Uncle Harvey, we called him Pap. Although he had passed away by the time I found the few Morgans he had stashed, without finding those I may have never had an interest in collecting. I should also say my childhood neighbor, Lloyd, for the influence in keeping the interest going for me by taking me to coin shows.

 

I had a few wheats in a glass jar i had pulled from circulation, but it wasn't until i got folders for Christmas for most of the modern serries that I got hooked.

 

Both of my parents were influential in my collecting. :thumb: They had put aside many wheat cents that they had found in circulation along with Peace, Morgans, and some gold. As I mentioned in my introductory post, that is where I found my 1909 S VDB that really got me going in this hobby. They gave these other coins to me after many years of my own collecting (except the 1909 S VDB which I found and stayed with me from the beginning, oh and also my whitman wheat cent folder with coins that I had collected), and they formed the core of my collection. I have expanded this collection beyond that, but they provided the seed. I still look back at the coins they provided and appreciate their contribution. They NEVER "bought" a coin -- slabs were not even in their sphere and coin collecting was what you did from circulation -- everything they had was saved from circulation. That has fueled two things in my collection, circulated coins that I can find or buy (more reasonably now days) but also slabbed coins in mine -- the major way I can buy coins now that are older that they were able to "collect".
John

 

quartertapper, as for getting your father started again first how does he react when you're together and you are showing him your coins. Does he seem interested? Yes spending time together is on way. Once you have a feeling he's interested I would check around for a real good coinshow comming to the area and invite him to go with you. The worst that could happen is the two of you have a father son day together. What was the coin of choice for your dad? Do you collect the same type? I would consider that since he must have ammased some knowledge in the field and might be willing to help you. In a nut shell though I would do things together until he decides to ask you to go to the coin events or dealers or he says enough.

 

My dad got me started by finding wheaties and some silver with metal detectors.

 

I'm the lone numismatist of the family.
Once I got started though I was never discouraged. Mom bought me coins here and there as well as my dad.