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~ NCLE ERNIE'S TIME MACHINE (WoodenJefferson won the prize) ~
lordmarcovan
Posts: 43,225 ✭✭✭✭✭
Final edit: WoodenJefferson won, though it wasn't easy to pick a winner and I went with a semi-random selection in the end.
I was thinking back to "Operation Stone Holey" and how much fun that little game was, so I thought maybe I'd host another game. Unlike the aforementioned one, though, anybody anywhere can play this one. It will require a little thought on your part, but most of us have probably already daydreamed or thought along this theme anyway.
OK, here we go.
My eccentric great-uncle was a mad scientist, let's say. He invented a time machine. It's sitting out in his garage, next to the rusty Model A Ford and covered with an old tarp and a bit of pigeon poop and cobwebs. He left it to me in his will.
The thing is, it's untested and could be a bit dangerous. I need somebody to try it out. So I am going to let you borrow it, for one single joyride. However, I should tell you that he never used it because he thought it might only hold up for one trip, and he never could make up his mind over which destination to choose. More than one round trip would be just be too risky. The controls have been set and all we have to do is put in your destination date and geographical location, if you're ready to take the chance.
Here are the limitations. My crazy great uncle did tell me a few things about time travel, at least theoretically. I didn't understand half of what he said, but this much I gathered:
You can travel anywhere in time or space; that is, to any date in time and to any city in the world, but only for one trip and a quick return (I hope you'll return!)
You can bring physical objects and clothing backward or forward in time BUT you cannot bring something back to before the time it was created. That would cause a time paradox and create a vortex in the something-or-other. I forget how ol' Uncle Ernie worded it, but it would be bad. Very bad. So you have to be careful what you bring.
Since we're all numismatists here, one object of this journey will numismatic. Your job will not just be to try out the time machine, but to gather some nice old coins and bring them forward to the 21st century. You could probably travel forward to the 24th century, for all I know, but since there are too many unknown variables in the future, your one short day trip is going to be to the past. So you might as well make the most of it.
I am letting you keep all of the coins you gather in your destination, as payment for the risks you'll be taking as history's first time travel test pilot. I do hope you'll let me buy some from you upon your return, though. Here are some more rules.
You cannot bring back modern clothing or artifacts, including coins, with you, as obviously they would create a time paradox. But you will need something with which to "trade with the natives", so to speak. So you must carry back with you coins or currency appropriate to their time period, in order to trade with them. (Please, no bullion or other trade goods). In addition to a suit of appropriate period clothing, you must purchase these older coins or currency now, in the 21st century, at current retail prices. Obviously, if you are going back to Philadelphia in 1877 to get yourself some brand new 1877 Indian cents, for example, you will need to purchase them with earlier, well-worn, common-date type coins minted before 1877. And if, for example, the coins you brought are dated 1876, they can't be AG or Fair or folks will wonder how they got worn so flat in only a year. If you're using low end culls, they'd better be at least 20 years old in your destination time.
You can't rob museums or the king's treasury or buy directly from the Mint or collectors of the day. You must use regular commercial channels to find your coins.
Also, you may only bring $20 face value with you (or its foreign equivalent by current exchange rates, if you are going to another country). We can't let you be too rich in your destination time, can we? You might attract the attention of robbers or highwaymen, and if such undesirables followed you back to the time machine and got hold of it, all of history might be affected.
I think that's it. Pack your bags. No, don't bring luggage. Just get yourself one suitable outfit of period clothing and $20 face value in period coins or currency, and meet me at Uncle Ernie's garage. Watch out for the spiderwebs there. Oh, hey, while I think of it, let's go into the house. Uncle Ernie's late wife, Aunt Erma, was a costume and prop director for the theater, and I happen to know she had all sorts of period clothing stored in closets upstairs in the old house. I'll bet we could outfit you there. She was a stickler for accuracy, too, so hopefully the clothes won't cause a paradox when you go back in time. They might smell a little like mothballs, though. So that's taken care of. You do need to buy yourself $20 face value worth of period coinage before leaving, however. You're on your own there.
Ready?
OK, let's recap.
1. You may travel to any place or date in history. But you only have one destination, and one day in the past, so you won't be hopping from city to city much, considering the limitations of period transportation.
2. No modern artifacts and only one outfit of period clothing and $20 face value of period coins or currency may go back with you.
3. You must buy the coins or currency you're bringing along at current 21st century retail values.
4. Upon reaching your destination, you may not rob museums or anyone else, or buy from collectors or mints- you may only deal with common citizens in normal commercial channels.
5. Whoever does the best trading and/or tells the best story about the journey will win the prize coin (and keep his or her virtual time travel finds).
6. Time trips need to be completed before August 1, 2009. Think carefully before posting your final answer, and say, "this is my final answer" when you post it. No edits of your final answer post!
7. Upon your return you must clearly summarize the following: (A) What you brought back with you for swapping stock and what it cost you before you left, (B) the month, year, and place you visited, (C) what you bought, and its total 21st century retail value. (D) Extra consideration will be given if you creatively describe who you met and what you saw in the past and tell a colorful and convincing tale of your journey.
8. I'll probably dragoon my buddy savoyspecial and maybe somebody else to help judge how successful your hypothetical journeys were. If we can't decide who had the best trip, a random drawing will be made from amongst two or three finalists.
I know you Bust half people and other specialists are probably going to go back and look for rare die varieties but I won't know how to judge those, so be warned. I'll be using the Redbook or Krause catalogs to judge the monetary aspect of your success, most likely. Error and variety people- remember, you can't get your coins from the Mint, so how likely are you to find them at a bank or in circulation, really? You might only find one or two, or none at all. Let's keep it fairly simple.
Oh, yeah. The prize coin. It is something of a potential time paradox in itself. I am not 100% convinced of its authenticity, but I think there's a decent chance it's real. If it is indeed genuine, then good for you. If not, and it is conclusively proven fake, you still will have won yourself a big fat piece of silver (and I'll probably give you a genuine coin of a similar age). It is appropriate to the dual US/World nature of this contest, because though it is a "foreign" coin, it is of a type that I'm certain was in circulation in Colonial America.
See the discussion about it and a picture of it HERE.
(edited a little for clarification)
I was thinking back to "Operation Stone Holey" and how much fun that little game was, so I thought maybe I'd host another game. Unlike the aforementioned one, though, anybody anywhere can play this one. It will require a little thought on your part, but most of us have probably already daydreamed or thought along this theme anyway.
OK, here we go.
My eccentric great-uncle was a mad scientist, let's say. He invented a time machine. It's sitting out in his garage, next to the rusty Model A Ford and covered with an old tarp and a bit of pigeon poop and cobwebs. He left it to me in his will.
The thing is, it's untested and could be a bit dangerous. I need somebody to try it out. So I am going to let you borrow it, for one single joyride. However, I should tell you that he never used it because he thought it might only hold up for one trip, and he never could make up his mind over which destination to choose. More than one round trip would be just be too risky. The controls have been set and all we have to do is put in your destination date and geographical location, if you're ready to take the chance.
Here are the limitations. My crazy great uncle did tell me a few things about time travel, at least theoretically. I didn't understand half of what he said, but this much I gathered:
You can travel anywhere in time or space; that is, to any date in time and to any city in the world, but only for one trip and a quick return (I hope you'll return!)
You can bring physical objects and clothing backward or forward in time BUT you cannot bring something back to before the time it was created. That would cause a time paradox and create a vortex in the something-or-other. I forget how ol' Uncle Ernie worded it, but it would be bad. Very bad. So you have to be careful what you bring.
Since we're all numismatists here, one object of this journey will numismatic. Your job will not just be to try out the time machine, but to gather some nice old coins and bring them forward to the 21st century. You could probably travel forward to the 24th century, for all I know, but since there are too many unknown variables in the future, your one short day trip is going to be to the past. So you might as well make the most of it.
I am letting you keep all of the coins you gather in your destination, as payment for the risks you'll be taking as history's first time travel test pilot. I do hope you'll let me buy some from you upon your return, though. Here are some more rules.
You cannot bring back modern clothing or artifacts, including coins, with you, as obviously they would create a time paradox. But you will need something with which to "trade with the natives", so to speak. So you must carry back with you coins or currency appropriate to their time period, in order to trade with them. (Please, no bullion or other trade goods). In addition to a suit of appropriate period clothing, you must purchase these older coins or currency now, in the 21st century, at current retail prices. Obviously, if you are going back to Philadelphia in 1877 to get yourself some brand new 1877 Indian cents, for example, you will need to purchase them with earlier, well-worn, common-date type coins minted before 1877. And if, for example, the coins you brought are dated 1876, they can't be AG or Fair or folks will wonder how they got worn so flat in only a year. If you're using low end culls, they'd better be at least 20 years old in your destination time.
You can't rob museums or the king's treasury or buy directly from the Mint or collectors of the day. You must use regular commercial channels to find your coins.
Also, you may only bring $20 face value with you (or its foreign equivalent by current exchange rates, if you are going to another country). We can't let you be too rich in your destination time, can we? You might attract the attention of robbers or highwaymen, and if such undesirables followed you back to the time machine and got hold of it, all of history might be affected.
I think that's it. Pack your bags. No, don't bring luggage. Just get yourself one suitable outfit of period clothing and $20 face value in period coins or currency, and meet me at Uncle Ernie's garage. Watch out for the spiderwebs there. Oh, hey, while I think of it, let's go into the house. Uncle Ernie's late wife, Aunt Erma, was a costume and prop director for the theater, and I happen to know she had all sorts of period clothing stored in closets upstairs in the old house. I'll bet we could outfit you there. She was a stickler for accuracy, too, so hopefully the clothes won't cause a paradox when you go back in time. They might smell a little like mothballs, though. So that's taken care of. You do need to buy yourself $20 face value worth of period coinage before leaving, however. You're on your own there.
Ready?
OK, let's recap.
1. You may travel to any place or date in history. But you only have one destination, and one day in the past, so you won't be hopping from city to city much, considering the limitations of period transportation.
2. No modern artifacts and only one outfit of period clothing and $20 face value of period coins or currency may go back with you.
3. You must buy the coins or currency you're bringing along at current 21st century retail values.
4. Upon reaching your destination, you may not rob museums or anyone else, or buy from collectors or mints- you may only deal with common citizens in normal commercial channels.
5. Whoever does the best trading and/or tells the best story about the journey will win the prize coin (and keep his or her virtual time travel finds).
6. Time trips need to be completed before August 1, 2009. Think carefully before posting your final answer, and say, "this is my final answer" when you post it. No edits of your final answer post!
7. Upon your return you must clearly summarize the following: (A) What you brought back with you for swapping stock and what it cost you before you left, (B) the month, year, and place you visited, (C) what you bought, and its total 21st century retail value. (D) Extra consideration will be given if you creatively describe who you met and what you saw in the past and tell a colorful and convincing tale of your journey.
8. I'll probably dragoon my buddy savoyspecial and maybe somebody else to help judge how successful your hypothetical journeys were. If we can't decide who had the best trip, a random drawing will be made from amongst two or three finalists.
I know you Bust half people and other specialists are probably going to go back and look for rare die varieties but I won't know how to judge those, so be warned. I'll be using the Redbook or Krause catalogs to judge the monetary aspect of your success, most likely. Error and variety people- remember, you can't get your coins from the Mint, so how likely are you to find them at a bank or in circulation, really? You might only find one or two, or none at all. Let's keep it fairly simple.
Oh, yeah. The prize coin. It is something of a potential time paradox in itself. I am not 100% convinced of its authenticity, but I think there's a decent chance it's real. If it is indeed genuine, then good for you. If not, and it is conclusively proven fake, you still will have won yourself a big fat piece of silver (and I'll probably give you a genuine coin of a similar age). It is appropriate to the dual US/World nature of this contest, because though it is a "foreign" coin, it is of a type that I'm certain was in circulation in Colonial America.
See the discussion about it and a picture of it HERE.
(edited a little for clarification)
0
Comments
Wasn't Uncle Ernie the pedophile uncle on the Who's Tommy? Played by Keith Moon (so very creepy).
Maybe you want to rename this to Uncle Charlie!
Different Uncle Ernie, for sure. Though this imaginary Uncle Ernie WAS a weird sort of guy, in a harmless way.
Edit: I suppose I could have called him Uncle Albert, after the McCartney/Wings song. But Uncle Albert was obviously very British.
Uncle Ernie is something like a cross between Christopher Lloyd's character in Back To The Future, except with an Einsteinesque white mustache.
Nope- too late. I've already imagined him, so Uncle Ernie he remains.
PS I like the buying comics and then using your gains to buy at todays prices because with only $20 and one day, you would run into trouble finding the actual coins you wanted, unless you hit a 19th century B&M, Comics would be readily available almost anywhere.
<< <i>PS I like the buying comics and then using your gains to buy at todays prices because with only $20 and one day, you would run into trouble finding the actual coins you wanted, unless you hit a 19th century B&M, Comics would be readily available almost anywhere. >>
That makes good sense, but for the sake of the game let's say I'll give you good odds of finding whatever coins you're after (that roll of new 1916-D dimes, for example), if you are at a time and place where there's a reasonable chance of success. (If you were in late-1916 Denver, though, it might be hard to get over to Philadelphia in time to pick up some of those new 1916 Standing Lib quarters).
PS I think I actually want 1787
Edit to add: there's no US Mint in 1786, so technically you won't be buying that doubloon "from the mint". Brasher is a goldsmith, right? So technically he qualifies as a tradesman, which would fit the definition of "ordinary commerce", I suppose.
Now that that's been established, I suppose Standish Barry or Templeton Reid or the Bechtlers might be getting visited by a few time travelers. Hmm.
(How many Tons can I bring back with me? Lets Say10 Ton at 951.60 an ounce.) Then I instantly become a whale and can spend the rest of my life buying any coin that Strikes me (ha ha)
PS this is what you do on Sunday morning when you don't go to church....
Yellowkid- maybe that would be the way to go. I thought of offering him Continental Currency, since low grade, common examples might be cheaper today than 8-reales pieces, but I guess Continentals were pretty much worthless by 1786? Paper currency is not my forte, but I did leave it open for that. I suppose low-end pieces of eight might even be cheaper on today's market, for all I know. And you'd only need, what, less than twenty of them to buy the doubloon?
You're on the right track, I think. Let me know when you've returned from the trip and what your final answers are.
Edit- OK, let's assume you got a friendly teller at the Old West bank, with no other customers waiting. He does know what coin collectors are, although they're usually a more Eastern phenomenon. He lets you pick and choose through the drawer. Realistically, what is the best you could get for your $20 worth of small change? And remember, you have to have $20 worth of period small change before you take your trip, so be sure to tell what you bought before leaving. And $20 face in the Old West days will only get you a single double eagle, or two $10 pieces, whatever. Be sure to include those details when you make your final answer. Make your answer colorful and convincing. You have tough competition, if Yellowkid decides he's going to do the Brasher doubloon thing and comes home with an UNC example.
I knew it would happen.
OK, I think I've given enough hints about how to play, though I'll still answer questions. When you have your final answers, put "final answer" in your post, and no edits for that post!
Swapped $20 in circulated 1880s Morgans purchased for $12 each in 2009 ($20x12=240). Went to a Wells Fargo bank where I was greeted by the man pictured below:
He asked me what I wanted and I told him I wanted to swap these 20 dollar coins for $20 in the new quarters. To my delight, he did indeed have $20 in uncirculated 1901-S quarters. Excited, I quickly reentered the time capsule and headed back for July 26, 2009.
Total 2009 value of coins brought with me: $240
Total 2009 value of coins brought back: $1,420,000 (assuming the coins are MS60-surely they have to be better though!)
Tightbudget- that is exactly the sort of detailed response I intended for this time travel diary! You covered all the details, gave the dates and places and prices, and even added a little color in the form of an old picture!
THAT is how it's done.
I'll take that as a final answer, as long as you don't edit it. I like how you were conservative in estimating MS60 on the coins, even though we all know you got a few MS63s in there. Convincing enough for me, and a pretty darn good virtual profit for you!
jmski52- good idea- I like that scenario. But you could probably find something cheaper on today's market than XF gold eagles as a trade medium. Think about it before posting your final answer.
Ok, since I'm feeling lucky - I'll hope that I can take a VF-20 pre-1874 Double Eagle with me and have it broken into smaller change at the local bank. I hope they don't gouge me for the service. Then, I'm continuing on with Plan A - which is to go into banks, bar rooms and pool halls looking for some of those shiny, brand-new 1893-S Silver Dollars. I'll even pay a 10 cent bonus if I like the coin a whole lot!
I knew it would happen.
I want to arrive the morning of April 14, 1865 in Washington DC. With my money I'd purchase a ticket to "Our American Cousin" a comedic play in town showing at the Ford's Theater that same night as well as whatever pistol and bullets I could afford with what was left. I'd forego food and drink since I'm there for just one day.
I'd arrive at the theater as early as they'd let me and secure me a location in close proximity to where President Lincoln was to view the play. Then figuring that Major Henry R. Rathbone wouldn't likely take me serious I'd have to take matters into my own hands. I'd wait until John Wilkes Booth approached the Presidents box during the play and I'd then step up and shoot him dead, thus saving President Lincolns life.
I suppose Lincoln might give me a token of his appreciation in the form of coin; but it hardly would matter. I'd come back none the wealthier financially, but I'd come back having done something worth far more.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
It's been a few years since the local civil war was passed, and hopefully the area will be calm and I can travel safely without raising too many suspicions.
I'll pack up and prepare for a night in the countryside. I may need to buy a shovel, so I'll swing into town and check around before proceeding with my plan - Digging up the Tregwynt hoard. I read that it's buried near a farm, but those who have left it have strangely abandoned the hoard of gold and silver coins and artifacts. My plan is to dig it out of it's grave rather than leave it for the hundreds of years that it will otherwise sit and decay in the ground. Well, that's the plan. I'll work at night, under cover of darkness so that no one will be alerted to my activities. I should actually be in and done in a matter of a few hours, just long enough to remove the loot and make a silent escape in the night.
I guess that by doing this I am not stealing in the eyes of our gracious host and his wacky uncle hoozit, as this hoard has been otherwise buried until the 1990's. I'll also assume this won't disrupt a timeline any more than anyone else removing objects from history.
Booty - 33 gold and 467 silver coins and a gold ring, medieval English coins of Charles I and Edward VI.
Not the largest possible score, but one that would interest me and make for an instant museum-quality collection.
<< <i>I'm taking (4) XF Half Eagle Gold coins with me to San Francisco, 1893, and I'm going into banks, bar rooms and pool halls looking for some of those shiny, brand-new 1893-S Silver Dollars. I'll even pay a 10 cent bonus if I like the coin a whole lot!
I like this idea, but I would go to San Fran in late 1901, I'd bring $25 worth of 1887 and 1888 Indian Head cents in F-VF and trade as many as I could for 1901S Quarters
I figure the Indian heads' grades wouldn't be as noticeable and they are rather inexpensive relative to the quarters
Currency - 1928-1929-1934 Series Stars All Denom. - 126 of ~846
Lincoln Cent Varieties
Baseball cards: Kirby Puckett
I'm meeting Colonel William Phillips Biddle (Bill or "Double B" to his friends) for a drink at an outdoor cafe on Roxas Boulevard, overlooking Manila Bay. Bill recently arrived from Marine Barracks Philadelphia and is currently commanding the 1st Brigade in Manila. The breeze from the South China Sea and the palm trees overhead makes the climate somewhat bearable.
Later this afternoon I will be attending a bond auction where the Manila Railroad company hopes to raise $4 million for the development of a new railway line to the southern province of Cavite, and later tonight, I have plans to attend a show at the Grand Opera House. It is a charitable event being held for the victims of the great San Francisco earthquake.
I ask Bill where I can exchange my gold piece for some local currency. He suggests the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), which is located just down the street. After a few gin and tonics I mosey over to the bank and exchange my double eagle with an eager young teller. He hands over 40 silver Pesos from his till, as the official exchange rate is pegged at 1 Philippine Peso to 50 American Cents. The Pesos are dated 1906, having just arrived in a mint bag from San Francisco a few weeks earlier. They are clearly uncirculated, with full mint luster, but have the usual bag marks from traveling the 8,000 miles from San Francisco by steam ship. I grade them choice uncirculated.
Since I decide to pass on the bond offering, and the opera tickets were paid for by a friend of mine, I return to 2009 with the forty 1906-S Philippine Silver Pesos carefully tucked into the two inner pockets of my dinner jacket. Later in 1906, due to the rising price of silver, all 1906-S Philippine Pesos were recalled to San Francisco to be melted and re-struck into a smaller size and fineness, all dated 1907-S. Of the 200,000 or so 1906-S pesos originally minted, only a fraction remain, most heavily circulated and/or harshly cleaned, as was the practice of Philippine collectors at the time.
The 2009 Red Book values the 1906-S Peso at $25,000 in MS-63, but of course, no Pesos exist in MS-63 or higher. The population in MS-62 is 2 and in MS-61, it is 1. Three total mint state pieces have been certified. The MS-61 example sold for over $30,000 several years ago. If a MS-63 piece was to come to market, it would easily fetch over $100,000. Of course, all 40 of my examples are genuine, as nobody realized in 1906 what a rarity this date would become. All in all, I turned $20 in face value into something close to $4 million.
This is my final answer!
Reporting to the dis-embarking point, I rummaged thru the period costumes and came across a bowler hat, a long coat, a nice white shirt with a stiff collar and even stiffer cuffs. The pants were too short, but they did show off the spats rather well, so I agreed to wear this for the time travel.
I also want to take along a period swim suit just in case my meeting took place at a beach, I wanted to be prepared for any event. Since this was my first time travel experience, I did not really know what quite to expect.
I had Lord M set the dials to May 1, 1908 and to have the device take me to Detroit, Michigan, to rendezvous with a would be famous person.
I stepped into the machine as Lord M closed and latched the door. The Plexiglas window began to fog a bit as my breathing increased in tempo. Wiping the glass, I could see Lord M throw some switches and everything began to swirl, buzz and crackle. The machine hummed and sputtered, but from the outside looking in, I just simply disappeared in a puff of smoke.
I did disappear from July 26, 2009 and went back in time all the way to May 1, 1908.
I found myself standing on a sidewalk out in front of Griswold’s Deli, located in the Eastern Market area just a few blocks from Comerica Park and the soon to be Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. A horse pulling a carriage went by on the dirt road and ladies dressed in long dresses carrying umbrellas strolled up and down the brick sidewalk.
Feeling a sudden urge, I entered the deli. A small bell rang over the door as I casually looked around for a slim, middle aged man. (the person I was looking for would have been age 45 in 1908) I soon noticed a familiar face sitting alone, nestled in a booth at the rear of the deli. He was quietly reading the daily copy of the Detroit Free Press. I approached the booth and introduced myself and told him I was there to solve his “automobile” problems. I told him for the sum of $2500, I would lay out the plans for a “conveyor belt type manufacturing plant” required for mass assembly of “his” automobile. With a raised eyebrow, Mr. Ford folded up his newspaper and invited me to join him.
Henry Ford
After laying out an initial diagram, he excused himself and spoke to a man at the counter. The man at the counter rose and left as Mr. Ford rejoined me, asking me to please go on. I explained to him mass transportation and a road system that would soon criss-cross this great nation of ours. Elated and eager for more information of this type of reverse engineering, the unidentified man returned and handed Mr. Ford an envelope. Mr. Ford looked inside and slid it to me across the table. I picked it up and looked inside. Nestled inside were 25 1891 series $100 dollar bills. Knodding, I put the envelope into my coat pocket and went on with this wonderous tale of every American owning an automobile.
Now, the money alone in the envelope would have been just fine to bring back to the future, but I had another piece of history in mind. That being a certain $10 gold trial piece struck by the Cincinnati Mining and Trading Co. This particular lot was coming up for auction that day and knowing that no piece of numismatics had ever sold for more than $2000, my offer of $2,500 would most likely succeed. This unique one of a kind smooth edge gold trial strike is only going to increase in value, so for a 65¢ investment (lunch) I could retain a half a million dollar coin for the future.
PCGS # 10128 1849 $10 Cincinnati Mining & Trading MS
Recent examples of reeded edges:
EF45 $431,250.00 May-2004 Stack's John J. Ford, Jr. Part II 362 NONE ex Brand
EF40 $270,000.00 Mar-1980 Bowers & Ruddy Garrett Collection Part 2 885 NONE Ex. Woodward; Zabriskie; Ellsworth
EF40 $104,500.00 Jun-1984 Bowers and Merena Virgil Brand Collection II 1539 NONE
At the end of our discussion with time running out, I reached into my wallet and pulled out one of the period $10 bills and paid for Mr. Ford’s sandwich, a simple Rueben on Rye. The waitresses eyes bulged at a $10 bill to pay for a 65¢ meal, but the waitress scooped up the tab and the bill before Mr. Ford could react. I tipped her with a couple of 1899 $1 Silver Certificates, the very ones she had given me in change, excused myself from Mr. Ford. I bid him adieu and proceeded directly to the Western Union window located right there in Griswold’s Deli.
Main Operating Room of the Western Union, New York, Scribner's Magazine, July 1889.
Image shows the pneumatic tube system for transmitting messages to and from city stations, and
the mechanical messenger system for collecting from and distributing to the 600 operators in the room.
I asked for a money transfer form the clerk and proceeded to fill it out in detail and for it to be sent along with the $2500 retainer to; Bonhams & Butterfields Auction House, New York, New York, the very company where the 1849 $10 Gold Cincinnati Mining and Trading Co. trial piece was going to be sold later that day. If the coin was won by my offer, it was to be sent to a Mr. Lammot DuPont via registered mail, along with any left over monies. In turn, I had arranged for Mr. Dupont to leave the coin in a locker at Grand Central Station there in NY and for his troubles, to keep the remainder of cash refunded by the auction hose. In turn, he was to mail the locker key to my Grandfather along with a note stating that this key was very important and to keep it in a safe place until someone specifically asked for it. Course, that someone would have been me, but on October 4, 1967 everything would change.
Eagerly wanting to return back to the future, I stood in the exact spot where I had arrived and waited. It seemed like hours but it was only really minutes that I was transported back to 2009 and re-materialized in Uncle Ernie’s Time Machine. Dazed and dizzy I stepped from the machine and thanked Lord M for his hospitality, changed clothes and left to ponder my fate.
Going to the archives at the local library, I soon discovered an article where it showed the coin was bid up to $2,109 dollars and sold to an unknowm American. (smile) I have no idea what the juice was back in those days but I do know that in the end, Mr. DuPont was well rewarded for his efforts.
I later found out that Mr. Dupont did not follow through with the original instructions in 1908 by putting the $10 gold territorial coin a locker at Grand Central Station, instead he just pocketed it as he walked out of the auction house and never looked back. Those subsequent actions created this coin to be lost forever when 5 armed men stormed into the DuPont Miami compound on October 4, 1967 and stole over 7,000 coins, including the $10 Gold trial piece. To date, this coin has never surfaced and is more than likely, lost forever. I was so close!
I did however return with $7.35 in change from the deli bill and also still had one of the other $10 dollar Bison bills, but looking at my change, I noticed a Gem Bu 1901-S Barber Quarter which I had graded out at as a PCGS MS-66 ($135,000.00) and one 1905 micro-O Barber dime that graded out as a MS-64 ($8,000.00)
So, in reality, my time adventure was not a complete loss after all.
~Woody~
Note: During time travel, bodily functions are still normal and you still get a 5 O'clock shadow.
"this is my final answer"
"Keep your malarkey filter in good operating order" -Walter Breen
<< <i>I'd wait until John Wilkes Booth approached the Presidents box during the play and I'd then step up and shoot him dead, thus saving President Lincolns life. >>
No no no- no matter how tempting that might be, you cannot change history. Can't save famous lives, warn people of imminent disaster, etc. That causes a time paradox when you change the past. Your time travel mission is to get in and get out in as short a period of time as possible (less than a day in the past), and WITHOUT altering history, except for bringing home a few numismatic souvenirs.
Edit to add: WoodenJefferson's lunch with Henry Ford and passing of engineering secrets is similarly flirting with disaster, but it can be argued that Ford would have figured it out on his own, anyway, so we'll assume WJ gets back to the 21st century without causing a complete wreck of the time vortex or whatever Uncle Ernie called it.
Also, as any good SciFi enthusiast will tell you, even the slightest change of the past (like our taking of numismatic booty) would alter the future in unforeseen ways and cause a paradox, but for the purposes of the game, we'll suspend some of those rules. (Remember the Ray Bradbury story where a time traveler visiting dinosaurs accidentally steps on a small bug or butterfly without even realizing it, and returns to his own time to discover everybody's speaking a different language and everything has completely changed? That's one of the greatest SciFi short stories of all time, I think. Too bad I can't remember the title. I think it was "There Will Come Soft Rains". No, wait. That was the nuclear holocaust one, wasn't it. Hmm.
Aha. It was "A Sound Of Thunder".
<< <i>
<< <i>I'd wait until John Wilkes Booth approached the Presidents box during the play and I'd then step up and shoot him dead, thus saving President Lincolns life. >>
No no no- no matter how tempting that might be, you cannot change history. Can't save famous lives, warn people of imminent disaster, etc. That causes a time paradox when you change the past. Your time travel mission is to get in and get out in as short a period of time as possible (less than a day in the past), and WITHOUT altering history, except for bringing home a few numismatic souvenirs. >>
So... you're part of the Southern conspiracy huh?
Ok... I'll try to think about something else.
<< <i>Do you have a deadline for this contest? This is going to take some thought, maybe dreaming even. >>
See #6 in the OP. The deadline is August 1, as far as the prize is concerned, though if people wanna use this thread to post time travel daydreams forevermore, that's fine by me! I've always enjoyed similar daydreams, and reading time travel stories.
LM, on account of your penchant for ingenious rules formulations I predict you will be dealing with an elopement sometime in the not too distant future.
BTW, great thread.
<< <i>LM, on account of your penchant for ingenious rules formulations I predict you will be dealing with an elopement sometime in the not too distant future. >>
Is that a fancy way of sayin' I've obfuscated and befogged the thing unnecessarily?
'Cause I seem to have a penchant for that, unfortunately.
I wanted to put some rules in there to make it challenging, though, instead of making it a pure daydream thread. I'm happy to see some folks have been up to the creative challenge. It's mostly meant to be fun, obviously. It's plain to see I've watched too many time travel movies, though.
I've had the daydream enough times that I have often wondered about what you'd do to prepare for such a trip, down to the clothes worn and what you'd bring along to trade with the natives. Where you'd go to find the numismatic treasures. It's a fun daydream, you have to admit.
<< <i>Is that a fancy way of sayin' I've obfuscated and befogged the thing unnecessarily? >>
Not at all. Cleverly wrought!
I know it's risky, but it's risky travelling back in that time machine. So I think I'll roll the dice and stick with the 1933 Doulbe-Eagle!
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BONGO HURTLES ALONG THE RAIN SODDEN HIGHWAY OF LIFE ON UNDERINFLATED BALD RETREAD TIRES
I would choose going back to June 1, 1893 San Francisco (Random date in that year after coins were minted.) I would bring back with me 20 of my 1887 morgan dollars valued around 30 dollars each (2009). My goal is to acquire 1893-s, and maybe some 1892-s ( business strike and PL).
I would head to the nearest and most well known bank, the Pacific National Bank. Est’d in 1887.
This bank would have just received coins from the San Francisco National Mint.
At the Bank I would trade in my 1887 P morgan dollars for some new 1893-s dollars and 1892-s dollars. They may think me odd for trading in for new ones, but I would tell them I just want the newest coins that have only touched the least amount of human hands, and I did not want to come in contact with these so called “germs” that have been discovered recently. After receiving my new 1883-s, 1882-s dollars I would return back to the present day.
Total money spent on currency: $600 ish.
Total amount of new coin value: average value of 1893-s dollar in ms is $500,000.
Average value of 1892-s dollar in ms is $165,000, PL could be worth much more in higher grades. Maybe up to $500,000.
So lets say I get 15 1893-s dollars, and 5 good 1892-s dollars 1 in PL. 15 x 500,000 = $7,500,000. 4 x 165,000 = 660,000. 500,000 x 1 = 500,000. For a grand total of $8,660,000.
And I’d say at least that. I could just get all 1893-s dollars for $10 mil too.
of course if i get all coins ms 67 or higher thats 1,000,000 each. so $20 mil, but who's keeping track...
My collections!!!! : : Photos
My new VAMmer facebook group! : Silver Dollar VAMmers
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Went to all the banks and traded my 40 well worn 1810 Bust Halves for 2000 Bright shinny red 1821 large cents.
2009 Red Book value -1810 bust half in G-4 70.00 X 40= $2,800
2009 Red Book value -1821 large cent in MS60 7,500X 2000= $15,000,000
So i took $2,800 dollars with me and returned with 15 Million
Sometimes More coins is Better!
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Where I will go - Nottingham, England, mid-August 1665. The peak of the Black Plague of that year. This means that folks are scared, staying home, and not likely to disturb me on my mission. The good news, the incubation period is 4 days, I'll only be there one, and they have antibiotics back here. In Nottingham I use my coins to buy a shovel, a horse, and a cart. May be a bit difficult to find traders who are open but people still had to eat, so people still had to work, so someone would have been there. I choose Nottingham because it's the nearest site I recognized on a map to my final destination, but if research showed a closer settlement I would choose that.
Load up the time machine on the cart (hope it's not that heavy, if it is I could get a couple horses and a wagon, you get the idea) and set out roughly to the NorthEast, to what is now Nottinghamshire, in what was then Sherwood Forest (about 20 miles away). It was there, approximately 200 years earlier, a party likely retreating from the battle of Hexham hastily buried a chest of gold. I would dig up said chest, the location of which I could obtain pretty precisely from the building records of the project that led to its discovery in the 1960's. The chest cannot be buried so deeply since it was buried by hand. I would put the chest in the time machine, hop back in, and then upon my return get a quick shot of penicillin, "just in case."
The take - over 1400 medieval gold coins. One of the top 10 British treasures of all time (and the only numismatic one) according to the British museum.
"This is my final answer"
Successful BST (me as buyer) with: Collectorcoins, PipestonePete, JasonRiffeRareCoins
My YouTube Channel
1) Can I bring back modern materials made from period materials that would simply appear new and well made back in time?
2) Can we mug someone? A person isn't a bank after all...
3) Can we bring modern bullion back in time? Obviously, the bullion will not look modern, but likely, in nugget form.
<< <i>1) Can I bring back modern materials made from period materials that would simply appear new and well made back in time?
2) Can we mug someone? A person isn't a bank after all...
3) Can we bring modern bullion back in time? Obviously, the bullion will not look modern, but likely, in nugget form. >>
1. Hmm. Technically, yes, I suppose, though it wouldn't be in the true spirit of the challenge.
2. Absolutely not. See rule #4 above.
3. No. There is already a line in the OP that says, "Please, no bullion or other trade goods".
Come on guys! Share with us your fantastical time travel stories!
My collections!!!! : : Photos
My new VAMmer facebook group! : Silver Dollar VAMmers
Date, July, 1967.....Location, the Campground where we had our seasonal site and our old Alma trailer.
Just a lazy summer day age 13 again to hang out with Brett, Ike, Donny (a 10 year old kid who drove a VW bug around the campground), Steve...and who could forget Bambi! (hubbahubba).
Maybe go over and pick the dump, find a few soda bottles and take them down to the camp store for the deposit, 2 cents for the regular size, 5 cents for the big ones! I can still feel the sandy cool linoleum floor under my bare feet (dirty bare feet) as I write today. Talk Mrs. Rummler into making me a lettuce sub(?), thats a hogie roll with nothing but lettuce and mayo on it (pretty good). Have a creme soda and then hop back on the minibike Dad made me using an old briggs and stratton lawnmower engine...and putt back to the trailer.
Maybe later in the day go out with Dad in the kayak over to the river, do a little perch fishing, or some crabbing on the bulkhead. At night, get out the telescope and look at the stars and planets till Mr. Sandman came calling.
Ohhhhh so much fun could be had with a time machine, too bad its only a dream.
My collections!!!! : : Photos
My new VAMmer facebook group! : Silver Dollar VAMmers
www.brunkauctions.com
I've been away for a little while. Gonna be away for a bit longer, yet.
I just didn't want anybody to think I'd forgotten to pick a winner. The only reason I haven't done so is that I wanted to read everybody's stories with the proper attention they deserved, and I haven't had that opportunity yet. But I will.
In the end, creativity of the story might count more than the amount of virtual money you made on your time travel transactions, but we'll see. Savoyspecial has already told me who he picked.
All of the entries were good, and enough of them were really good to the point where I'll have a hard time judging. Thanks for playing.
I'll be back... eventually.
It was a fun trip.
I guess that's it for my time traveling until fall comes around and I can resume metal detecting, or until I see that new "Time Traveler's Wife" movie that's out now. (Has anybody seen it yet? Any numismatic scenes in there?)
Thanks for putting on this challenge, LordM, it was certainly a fun experience.
PM sent for the Prize…I almost forgot about the prize!
1790 Silver Rider (Netherlands/Zeeland ducaton) Authentication questionable…no matter, I will enjoy doing research on this coin.
"Keep your malarkey filter in good operating order" -Walter Breen