In commemoration of ten years of coin collecting and finding my (tied for) oldest coin from the wild a week ago today I was curious as to what the oldest coins I ever found in circulation were. I looked into it and figured I'd share the results with all of you. I'd love to hear about everyone else's oldest finds as well. And if you have pics, even better! Everyone loves a little eye candy! Anyway without further ado.. #5..This is the coin that started it all for me. I always had a fascination with coins but I had this false belief that in order to begin a half decent collection you needed a fair amount of investment capital. Anywho, i used to toss any foreign coins I came across in this little yellow Easter basket I had had for many years. One day in 2013 I felt a sudden urge to take a look at what I had. Upon digging through the coins I found a really old one. 1911!! I said to myself, 'Wow! I wonder what country this is from?' Well I'd be darned.. it was from the United States of America! Uncovering that little piece of history awakened the dormant numismatist in me. Here she is, the one that kickstarted this wonderful journey.. 1911 V Nickel #4..A few years back we used to have a snack vending machine in the backroom at work. One day my stomach was growling so I decided to grab a bag of chips. Before I inserted my money I noticed a coin in the reject tray. To my surprise it was a cent. To my even greater surprise it was the oldest coin I had found at the time, and would hold that title for a few years. It's very worn but it's beautiful to me nonetheless.. 1910 Wheat Cent #3..I work 3rd shift. A couple of years ago I was stuck late at work in the morning. However I didn't mind because (a) it would make for a better paycheck at weeks end and (b) Taco Bell would be open by the time I left! So I hit up T Bell after my shift. A few tacos, a cheesy fiesta potato and a cheesy gordita crunch. Delicious! Per the usual I paid with cash. In my change something stuck out like a sore thumb. When it comes to Wheaties your boys got eagle eyes! And judging by the look of it, despite the nice condition, it appeared to be an older wheat. I flipped to the obverse.. lo and behold, my first ever first year wheat cent. I flipped back to the reverse and got another nice little surprise at 6:00! To this day it is my most prized cent that I've ever pulled out of circulation. Judging by the condition I assume that it was in the hand of other collector(s) for a long stretch of time.. 1909VDB Wheat Cent #1(tie)..The only entry in my top 5 from my coin roll hunting days. It's in rough condition but as they say, 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder.' Because it's still a gem to me and it's the only coin of its type that I found in many, many nickel rolls.. 1907 V Nickel #1(tie)..Last but not least is a coin I found in a CoinStar reject tray last week and the only coin of its type that I have ever found in the wild. The only silver coin on this list. You may say he's developed a few wrinkles over the years but hey, if by some miracle I make it to 116 years old I hope I look half this good.. 1907 Barber Dime RECAP: 5.1911 Nickel 4.1910 Cent 3.1909VDB Cent T1.1907 Nickel T1.1907 Dime It seems that that five year window is my sweet spot. One of these days I'll find a nineteenth century coin in the wild. I have played around with my new metal detector a little bit this fall but I have a bunch of hunting spots in mind for when I really begin in earnest in the spring. Perhaps I'll pull one out of the dirt!? In the meantime happy hunting and happy holidays. If you'd like to share your oldest finds we'd love to see them!
Hey @Mad Stax this was a fun thread. The one little thing that woulda made it better is images of the reverses! Just puttin' that out there, for you and anyone else who posts...
I have been collecting for 75 years and can't recall individual incidents, except the 1875 - S Twenty Cent Piece I got in change back in the 50's.
From change, I think it was a 1911 cent for me- and that was back in the '70s. All of the coins you posted are impressive for circulation finds.
Here is my most recent wild one. A 1900 Liberty found in a coin roll from my local bank. I later gave it to the teller when I found that she was a collector. Good PR.
I’ve gotten an 1884 and a 1892 ihc before and believe it or not about 15 years ago a well worn 1875 seated dime Strangest thing I’ve ever heard in crh was a 1854-c $5 in a bag of cents. I was the buyer from the finder of it
https://www.cointalk.com/threads/do-you-prime-the-pump-for-new-collectors.260907/ First, some background... Growing up in the 60's in small-town Oklahoma and working as an automotive fueling specialist (gas pump jockey), I often received obsolete coins that dated back to seated Liberties and occasionally even a bust coin or two. (In fact, this is what got me started on bust halves.) Later, after college, I went back to said small town and asked a couple of elderly gentlemen who had been regular customers if they had been "priming the pump" so to speak and seeking a new collector. Never could get either to admit it but I still think so.I now do the same thing. It is really cool to see the look when you spend a large cent or cull silver. Who knows...maybe the next Bustchaser is out there right now.
I have 14 grandchildren and 24 great grandchildren. I have been priming them since the day each was born. Some have taken the hobby very serious and are having fun at it. Here is a link to the process I used to get them interested. https://www.cointalk.com/threads/what-to-do-with-my-accumulation.341614/
Cool idea! Sounds like a lot of work but surely it was well worth it. Going through all of your finds from yesteryear must have been a trip. I hope you were able to pass the collecting bug on to some of the young-uns!
