Reliving some coins from my youth - Civil War Era Indian Head Cents

BillJones

When I was in high school, I thought that collecting the complete set of Indian Cents would be the greatest accomplishment. I finally did complete the set in grades that ranged from VG to Mint State. The 1877, 1872, 1869 and 1869 recut date, which was called a 9 over 8 in those days, were all in Fine or better. Then I sold the set for a big loss when the Indian Cents were at their lowest prices.

Recently I decided that it would be neat to put together a Civil War era Indian Cent set. I had an 1859 already in my type set. I also had the 1863 in my type set and an 1860 that had been bested by the 1863. I also have an 1865 raw coin, which is nice, but not worth the grading fee.

I started looked for an 1864 Bronze at the Summer FUN show. This is really a historic coin. It was the first cent that was the same size and weight as the bronze cent which was issued until 1982. That year the mint replaced the bronze cent with the copper coated zinc coins we have today. It is also a minor type coin because it was the only bronze Indian Cent that did not have the “Longacre L” on the ribbon. The inspirations for this coin were the lighter weight Civil War Tokens that the public showed a willingness to accept during the war.

I really wanted to find an MS-64 for this slot, but all I could find were MS-65 graded pieces. I looked at a couple of raw coins, but one was corroded and the other had had a spot lifted from the obverse. The dealer siill had it maked at over $100, which seemed like a lot of money for a problem coin.

Finally I decided to buy one that Liz Coggin had in MS-65 R&B. It was less expensive that a couple of other pieces on the floor in the same grade but was just as nice. The difference was those two coins had "a green football."

I also spotted an 1864-L cent. I had not intended bo buy that piece, but the coin was a nice MS-64 R&B. I think that the 1864 Bronze is just as scarce or scarcer than the 1864-L, but it's never gotten the proper credit for what it is. Since the 1864-L was nice I bought it too.

Now all I need is the 1861, 1862 and 1864 Copper-Nickel cents. That will be for another show. I won't be going for the complete Indian Cent set again, however. The heart of set runs from 1866 to 1878, and I don't feel like hoeing in that expensive gardin again.

NumisOxide

Very nice uniform looking cents.

BillJones

This is the third 1864-L Cent that I have owned. The first one I bought from a classmate in Junior high school. It had EF sharpness, but the surfaces were a smooth and uniform green from corrosion. I paid $3 for it and swapped to a dealer for $5 in trade. That piece had a re-cut date, which was interesting, but not overly unusual.

The second one was graded VG to Fine, which was one of the grades Gimbels used back in the 1960s. It had VF sharpness and good color, but was very slightly porous.

And now I have this one, which is the best of the lot by a wide margin.

oldabeintx

Love those Indians. Folks had bunches of them that they had saved from circulation back in the day. Acquired most of my first Indian collection from friends or friends of my parents who would indulge me. Got an EF 1864-L from a friend of my mother, paid her Redbook.

thebeav

Those are very nice.
It must be the history, but I've always been attracted to these years as well.
You've got a good memory. I couldn't even begin to remember my '64 L's.......

divecchia

That's a very nice start to the Civil War Era Indian Cents. My brother-in-law was thinking of doing a set of IHC, but thought it would be too much. Maybe I will suggest he start with a short set like this.

Thanks for sharing and good luck picking up the rest of the pieces. Donato

Tomthemailcarrier

Bill, I like your idea of an Indian Head Cent civil war set. IHC’s have always appealed to me. When I was a paperboy in the 60’s I’d occasionally receive them as payment. The paper was 50 cents a week.
Currently I own 3 that I bought from Rick Snow and one from the penny lady. (1864, 64L & 1877)

KindaNewish

@BillJones said:

The second one was graded VG to Fine, which was one of the grades Gimbels used back in the 1960s.

Updoot for the Gimbel's remember. The guy behind the counter there pissed me off for some reason when I was 10 or so. The 5th floor at Macy's always welcomed me and my paper route money.

BillJones

You are referring to the Gimbels New York store. I only went there two or three times. I mostly shopped at the one in Philadelphia.

ricko

Great memories of getting IHC's on my paper route in the '50's....and the occasional Columbian half... of course, all the dimes, quarters and halves were silver....Great times... Cheers, RickO

winesteven

Bill - Your post reads “reliving some coins from your youth” - I didn’t realize you were over 150 years old - attaboy! 😂

In all seriousness, great post, real nice coins, wonderful idea. Best of luck. You might consider checking with Rick Snow (Eagle Eye) for your needs. Without opening a can of worms, his “PDS” method has a lot of merit for obtaining coins of quality with real nice eye appeal in any grade.