My 2024 ANA World's Fair of Money report

ElmerFusterpuck · August 13, 2024 1:26PM

It's a bit after the fact, but figured I'd add my 2 cent show report before the next big show comes up! Overall I had a wonderful trip, cheap direct flights, great weather, a nice place to stay (Embassy Suites) and got to enjoy downtown Chicago with my wife. Plus we met up with our daughter who was up there visiting with her boyfriend. Making fun vacations around coin shows rules!

Now on to the show. I thought the show would be a big one, but this one was BIG. Felt like I crossed 2 time zones to get to the end. I was there on Tuesday, Wednesday, a little bit on Thursday and helped close it down on Saturday. I'm not sure what the attendance figures were, but this show appeared to be well attended, especially the first 2 days. The aisles here were a bit wider, which helped keep the crowd density down a bit. I'm betting that's why some posters said the show didn't appear crowded. The Tyrant collection was impressive, as usual. Doesn't matter if you collect those coins or not, the history was fascinating.

Rosemont/Stephens convention center was a fine location! We stayed right across the street so it was an easy walk to get in and out. The general area was fun to walk around, but getting to the outlet mall nearby was less than pedestrian friendly. Sidewalks are not overrated! We also hopped the CTA Blue Line to head downtown from the nearby Rosemont station (10 minute walk), so there was no need for a rental car. No major issues to report there, just like anywhere else - be aware of your surroundings.

I went to the show intent on selling some of my dups (toners or halves) or coins from a series I was no longer working on. I was doing this hoping to make a little money and to use the funds to pick up some other nice coins. I managed to sell all but 3 coins. The hardest coins to sell were the 19 MS-66 silver Washington quarters. It took several tries before I got a bite and a reasonable offer. I think this series is pretty dead at this time. Overall, I considered the sales successful.

At the show I met quite a few Instagram folks, and finally got to meet @spacehayduke in person. I got a wonderful 1806/5 bust quarter from him - I did not have a single type of that coin in my collection.

Now for the coins. Most of them are toners, but a few also filled my registry sets. I also found quite a few nice raw coins for the bookshelf albums. Overall I had a great show and pretty much all the dealers I talked to said the same, though more than a few said quite a bit coins were being offered for sale from collectors.

The 1806/5 25c in VF-20 CAC - mentioned above.
The 1939-D 50c in MS-66 CAC - from HLRC
The 1943 50c in MS-66 - slips my mind, I'll dig around for it
The 1891-S 25c in AU-53 - from Americana Rare Coins. This series is scarce for nice toners.
The 1963 Mexican 20 centavos in MS-65 BN - from Dennis King, top shelf toner
The 1885-O $1 in MS-66 - same place as the 1943 50c. Super color on this coin.
The 1886 $1 Redfield holder in NGC MS-63* - Deseret Coins. Chased this one for over a year.
The 1881 1c in PF-65BN - from Angel Dees, almost an obverse cameo.
The 1969-S 5c in PF-68 - from Dennis King. I've never seen another nickel with this color.
The 1954 1c in CACG PF-64-RB - from Eye Appealing Coins. Just some cool colors on this one.