How to create a generational collector family?
Zoins
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The Garretts, Stricklands and others built on collections over generations.
What's the secret to building these long lasting collections?
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other family members who are interested in the Hobby, without that a collection ends with the death of the owner.
“The size of your collection when I die determines the size of your inheritance.”
The family that ultimatums together collects together!
On a serious note, though, I think luck, modeling, and time spent together cultivating enjoyment of the hobby have a lot to do with it. My uncle got me in to coins and his kids have no real interest, that I can see. I won’t get to build on his collection unless I start making a lot more money and they give me the chance to buy it upon his death.
My kids are 6 and 10 and interested right now. Hopefully it’s a hobby we can enjoy together for a long time, but only time will tell.
I don't believe you can will (no pun intended) a generational family collection. It happens or it doesn't as a consequence of chance, economics or nurture.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Well stated.
Individual interests are a personal development... Most of us are exposed to many different fields of interest during our life...one or two spark a note of fascination. This could develop into a hobby or profession....or it could die out and something else take it's place. Personal foibles are part of an individual character....and you are only responsible for your own. Yes, you can talk about, show and even gift your coins to relatives - this will not guarantee that any one will become coin focused as a hobby. It is not something that can be inoculated... Cheers, RickO
I think in the well known collections in the tens of millions of dollars range, it becomes a significant part of the family’s fame and notoriety. Someone in the next generation wants to carry forward that distinction. I believe it starts with an outstanding collection that few have the means to acquire.
LIBERTY SEATED DIMES WITH MAJOR VARIETIES CIRCULATION STRIKES (1837-1891) digital album
My paternal grandmother was a coin collector, and she told me that she tried to get my father (her only child) interested in the hobby, to no avail. When I was a child, she started working on me, with the approval of my parents. Now I find myself in her position, but with no one in the family who is interested in coins.
Collections tend to be results of very personal, idiosyncratic endeavors. My father had no collector interests at all. My mother had a large collection of Lladro and Hummel porcelain figurines, but did not care for coins. My wife, I feared, seemed to start collecting dressage horses (up to 6 a decade ago, now down to 3). I seriously thought about starting to collect NJ coppers, thinking the design elements (especially horse heads!) might interest her in the hobby. She took one look at my first purchase, and said the horse looked like a camel (she had a point), and that was the end of that. Etc.
I don't think that forming an expensive collection would inspire a family member to start collecting coins. The market value would possibly generate interest from a potential heir, but not much else.
RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
Share your passion, enthusiastically, and engage your target audience.
There's a scene in "Dennis the Menace" where Mr. Wilson is looking at his gold coins on a rainy day while Dennis is bored. Instead of engaging Dennis and sharing his passion, he's standoffish and protective of his coins. While this makes sense in the theme of the movie, this is how both of my uncles who collected also acted, and how I feel many that own coins act. Instead of sharing their passion and knowledge, they isolate and protect it for the sake of security.
The only reason I got into coins was the work of my mother, who saw a spark, and fanned the flames, and my father, who seeded his change that I would search every day when he came home from work.
The aforementioned scene;
"It's like God, Family, Country, except Sticker, Plastic, Coin."
Very well stated!
It just happens if it happens. My mother collected some but it was mostly because of her father who was more of a typical collector in the 50s and 60s. I collect, of course, but my son may or may not. He’s 5 so it’s too early to know. My wife likes my coins and she’s got an affinity to Liberty nickels but she won’t be doing much collecting. Her grandfather collected but that was it. How much I sell when the time is right will depend on how much my son is interested.
TurtleCat Gold Dollars
If the interest in coin collecting is there it is there. If it isn't there it isn't there. Generational collecting families are a rarity. Most heirs just want to dump the collections for cash as quickly as possible.
Perhaps it wold be good to look at the families that did this and see if there were any notable characteristics, in both how future generations collected and and when it was finally disbursed.
Some recent sales include the Pogue sale and Henderson-Marchase sale.
Use the Stanford marshmallow experiment on them when they are 4
If they fail, get them into counseling quickly.
My Saint Set
Yep. My family ...feigns... interest but has none. I simply don't care anymore. We ..demonstrated... profitable collecting and dealing. Sure they enjoyed whatever luxuries or benefits profit generated but none of my descendants has ever bought or sold anything
I expect that they may remember the coin, gun, toy collections at my demise. If there's any justice, they'll see those same items that they ...had...sell for good amounts when they no longer have them.
I offered them college, businesses and guidance of experience.
They squandered it all.
They aren't alone as I talk to contemporaries who tell the same tale.
We ALL get what we deserve.
I get the knowledge of the failures I've made in my teaching and they get the rewards of indifference.
But maybe when or if my grandkids finish their 9 years of college and partying they might be smarter.
With no interest, there will be no transcendence. Simple as that.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
My entire family is pretty much going extinct.. we forgot to have kids! 😱
transcendence would be different.
Procreation of coin geeks . A novel idea.
Pair up a wolf and a buzzard. Presto.
I suspect many of these very wealthy family coin collections were a very small percentage of the family asset holdings. So there was no need to sell the coins after the collector was deceased, everyone was already well taken care of. Eventually someone else in the family would decide to take up the pursuit and the collection could continue.
Most modern collectors of modest means have a much larger percentage of asset wealth in coins. So it's unlikely the collection will stay in the family once the collector is gone, unless the family is well-enough that they don't need to sell it, and fortunate enough to have another passionate collector in the family.
NAIL ON HEAD !! well said.
Good question.